In my previous article on how to date your Seiko watch, I mentioned the nifty Jayhawk’s Production Date Calculator. In most cases it should return the correct date of manufacture.

However, there are circumstances in which the calculator may give you inconclusive or erroneous results. Or no results at all. When that happens, I would resort to what I call “dead reckoning” or rough estimation.

Dead reckoning is similar to navigating your way at sea by orientating yourself with the heavenly objects like the sun, moon and the stars. You won’t be accounting for wind conditions and at best your estimate may be a few miles off your actual position. That’s when a GPS unit comes in handy! 😉

Manually estimating the production date of a Seiko involves the element of anachronism. What is anachronism? Basically, it is the utilization of an event, a person, an object, language in a time when that event, person or object was not in existence. In other words, an anachronism is something that occurs out of its proper time. The chronological error of an anachronism can occur in either direction; it can result from something from the past being represented as if it belonged in the present, like an archaism, or it can result from presenting something at a time before it actually appeared, occurred, or existed.

And anachronism is the key to manually estimating the production date of your Seiko watch.

An example would be saying that a digital LCD watch was produced back in 1964 or claiming that old Kinetic watch in your drawer was purchased in 1983. Or an eBay seller proclaiming a vintage Seiko 7T59 quartz chronograph as a brand new model from 2003. In actuality, digital watches were only commercially available in the middle of the 1970s. Seiko Kinetics, originally branded as “Auto Quartz” and “A.G.S” (Automatic Generation System) only appeared at the end of the 1980s. As for the prized and short-lived, rare 7T59 chronograph models, they were only made between 1991 and 1993.

Putting it in another way, it’s like saying the iPhone was already available in the 1990s or Microsoft Windows 7 users were running the operating system in 2004 (neither are true!). Eagle eyed movie buffs are quick to point out anachronisms in movies and you can read about them under the “Goofs” section for the movie title in the Internet Movie Database.

OK, now that you basically know what an anachronism is, let’s learn how to date your Seiko watch manually!

To perform a dead reckoning dating of a Seiko watch, the five things that you need to know are:

History of the caliber

Reference number chronology

Watch markings

Watch design

Signs of aging and wear

History of the caliber

Knowing when the caliber was first made and ended production would the first useful clue.

A very straightforward example is the 7002 automatic diver which was introduced in 1988 to replace the aging 6309 model whose production years ran from 1976 to 1988. The 7002 had a market life span of eight years and was shelved by mid 1996 (replaced by the current 7s26 caliber). Therefore all 7002s couldn’t be made earlier than 1988 nor later than 1996.

The 7002-based SDS097K (left) and its successor model, the 7s26-powered SKX171K (right). Note that the 7002’s crown position is at 4 o’clock and lacks a day calendar display. Pics courtesy of Chronograph.com

Another good instance would be the famous 6138 and 6139 automatic chronographs. Seiko introduced these robust and workhorse calibers in 1970 and 1969 respectively. Neither calibers never made it to 1980 and to my best knowledge, Seiko ceased making 6139s between 1978 and 1979.

Why were they discontinued? My guess is these calibers were getting more costly to manufacture and at the same time, Seiko wanted to push its quartz technology to the watch buying public. Maybe at the time they thought that mechanical chronographs were obsolete and quartz was the way to go.

The discontinuation of the 6138 and 6139 movements also unfortunately spelt the death of affordable Seiko automatic chronographs, much to the disappointment to Seiko mechanical watch fans. Currently, Seiko only offers automatic chronographs for its higher end lineups, such as the Brightz (caliber 6s28), Prospex Flightmaster (caliber 6s37) and the “Rolls Royce of Seikos” – the magnificent Seiko Credor (caliber 6s37).

An early 6138-0011 from Oct 1970 (left) and a late production 6138-0011 dating to Apr 1977 (right). Note the “waterproof” marking on the earlier watch’s caseback and “water resistant” on the other one.

Complications in dating a Seiko watch will arise when production of the caliber hits 10 years or longer. Generally, Seiko doesn’t continue making the same caliber for longer than 8 years unless the caliber itself is profitable to manufacture or it came up with a replacement caliber.

Take for example, the 7T32 alarm chronograph. It first debuted in 1988 and was discontinued sometime in 2002. Therefore, if the a 7T32’s serial number starts with “1N”, you could narrow it down between 1988 and 2002. It cannot be 1981 because this caliber wasn’t available yet! Neither can it be 2008 because the caliber was already discontinued six years earlier.

This unfortunately leaves you with two possibilities – either November 1991 or November 2001. Obviously, this is not going to be very helpful because the correct year of production has to be either one of them but not both! Try to enter the caliber and the serial number into the Production Date Calculator and it will assume that the watch is from November 1991.

So how do you determine which is the correct production year? We take a step further by knowing the chronology of the watch’s reference number.

Reference number chronology

When faced with the above dilemma, the next logical choice would be to know the chronological order of the model. This is not easy to tell unless you have seen photos of models of the same caliber to serve as reference.

Early Seiko 7T32s have reference numbers beginning with “SDW” and followed by three digits while the last 7T32 models ended with “SDWG” with two trailing digits. The digits start from the lowest order to the highest order. When Seiko runs out of reference numbers, they would append a new alphabet starting with the letter “A”.

In this example, a 7T32 model with the reference prefix “SDW” obviously predates one with a “SDWA” prefix. In the same manner, a model that has the prefix “SDWF” would be a much later model than a “SDWB” and so on.

If you are able to determine that your mystery watch has a reference prefix e.g., “SDWF”, you can be sure that your watch is a late model 7T32. Therefore your watch would be a November 2001 production and not from 1991.

Three 7T32s arranged in chronological order. The SDW379P (left) predates the SDWA65P (middle) while the latter in turn, predates the SDWC02P (right). Pics courtesy of Chronograph.com

The same model numbering convention holds true for other Seiko models. When the company dropped the 7T32 caliber in the early 2000s and replaced it with the 7T62, it designated the first batch of 7T62s as the SNA-series. As mentioned earlier, Seiko assigns a running prefix number for its new models until it runs out of numbers. Thereafter, it would append an additional character into the reference prefix, starting with the alphabet “A”, as in “SNAA”.

Six years have passed since first SNA models rolled out the factory assembly lines and at the time of writing, the most recent models have the “SNAB” prefix. In a few months from now, you’ll find 7T62 models with reference letters starting with “SNAC” and perhaps, “SNAD”. This will continue until Seiko decides to discontinue the 7T62 caliber and replace it with a new one. Its replacement caliber will of course, have different reference letters.

Two 7T62 alarm chronographs side-by-side: An early Seiko Sportura SNA137P (left) and a very recent model SNAB69P (right). Watch photos courtesy of Chronograph.com

Watch Markings

When the watch’s reference number is unknown, there are certain visible clues that can help you zero in the watch’s production year. The key is in the watch markings. For instance, in the 70s and 80s Seiko typically uses the word “Seiko Quartz” or “SQ” to denote that the watch is a quartz powered model.

The 80s was particularly Seiko’s golden age for their analog quartz models. In fact, the Japanese watch giant was capitalizing on its solid reputation as the world’s largest producer of analog quartz timepieces. The words “Quartz” and “SQ” also served as a selling point and differentiated their quartz models from their automatic counterparts.

By the mid 1990s, Seiko had already carved itself a solid reputation as a quartz watch manufacturer. Seiko was churning out more quartz timepieces than mechanical ones and to the masses, a Seiko watch is generally associated with a quartz movement.

A beautiful and rare 2A22-026A Professional Diver’s 200m. The “Quartz” and “SQ” markings on the dial and bracelet clasp respectively are visible clues that this watch was from the mid 80s, Pictures courtesy of Thian Wong.

Seiko probably felt they longer needed to mark their quartz products with the words “Quartz” and “SQ” so both labels were eventually dropped. Since the mid 1990s, all Seiko watches are generally quartz by default. There are also some exceptions to this rule. For instance, the SHC015P and SHC033P divers are still marked as “Seiko Quartz” for certain export markets. I presume the Seiko company did this to distinguish them from their 7s26 automatic divers as both models have strong resemblances to their automatic counterparts.

Currently, all Seiko watches are quartz models except if the movement type is indicated on the dial. Therefore, if the dial doesn’t say “Automatic”, “Kinetic”, “Thermic”, “Solar”, “Direct Drive” or “Spring Drive” then you can be sure that the watch is battery-powered quartz. This applies to all current Seikos, from their most affordable generic quartz watches to the high end Grand Seikos.

Some vintage quartz divers come with battery change year markings on their casebacks. If the watch caliber’s battery life is rated for five years, there should be an indentation mark to indicate the approximate next battery change.

This information can be very useful in getting the watch’s production year right. The photo below shows a vintage 7C43-6020 Professional Diver’s 200m. You can see the battery change markings on the caseback ranging from 1995 to 2004. The dimple mark is stamped on the year “95” as the 7C43’s battery life averages 3 years.

An equally gorgeous and rare Japan market, Professional 200m diver’s watch made in 1992. Photo courtesy of Ty Maitland.

Watch Design

As with fashion, hairstyles, music and popular culture, watches also undergo design trends and fads. Getting the production year right purely based on the watch design is not that easy but you can still make educated guesses if you know a thing or two about design elements in its time.

For instance, LCD watches were the craze in the mid 1970s and Seiko produced pretty good classic LCD timepieces during the era.

Therefore if you have Seiko watches looking like in this picture below, there’s the element of certainty that they were from the late 1970s to the early 80s and no later than that.

A trio of well preserved Seiko LC digitals from the 70s. Seiko gradually phased out LCD watches with metal cases and bracelets by the mid 1980s.

Throughout the 1980s, Seiko made quite a number of analog-digital quartz calibers. The analog-digital trend unfortunately also faded by the early 1990s in favor of full analog quartz designs. Currently Seiko has only two analog-digital calibers left in its stable – the world-time H023, which is nearing its end of production life and also its latest H024 caliber.

If your watches look like these, you can be sure that they were from the 1980s.

A memorable example is the “moonphase” display trend on watches in the late 1980s. Practically almost all manufacturers (even the Guess fashion brand) had moonphase dial watches back then.

The moonphase fad had died down by the late 90s and to my best knowledge, currently only Citizen has moonphase models in their upmarket quartz and Eco-Drive Campanola line and of course, a handful of fine Swiss mechanical watches.

Two examples of forgotten moonphase Seikos from the early 1990s – a 7F39 (left) and a 7A48 (right). Seiko no longer made moonphase quartz watches since then.

As Seiko has made countless models since the last century, it is not possible to detail every possible style in this article. However you can at least scope the production year within one decade if you’re familiar with the watch styling.

As with other brands, Seiko watches also undergoes many stylistic changes over the decades. You could also browse through Jayhawk’s Watch Database and see if your watch or a model like it is listed there. Here are some additional tips that you may find useful:

A watch marked as “Seikosha” instead of Seiko is likely to made in the early 1960s or earlier.

A Seiko that has a 7-digit serial number is likely to be made in 1968 or earlier.

A Seiko that’s marked as “waterproof” is likely to be made before mid 1971.

A Seiko that uses Promethium-147 or Tritium radioactive luminous compound (instead of the non-radioactive LumiBrite) is likely to be made before the mid 1990s.

A Kinetic Seiko that’s labeled as “AGS” or “Auto Quartz” is likely to be from 1996 or earlier.

A Seiko 5 with a solid stainless steel caseback (as opposed to glass display back) is likely to be made well before 2004.

Some Seiko 7s26 divers, like the SKX011K were introduced earlier but were later dropped from the market and replaced with the SKX011J. In most likelihood, an SKX011K predates the SKX011J version.

Signs of aging and wear

Although estimating the production year of a Seiko watch could be done by looking for signs of aging, wear and tear, this is a very subjective and by no means a foolproof method for determining its age.

Generally, a ten year old watch or older would show telltale signs of its age in the form of case scuffs, dents, scratches on the glass and bracelet, non-working functions, faded dials, rusty watch hands, casebacks, etc. On the other hand, a relatively new watch could also accumulate those scratches, dents and cosmetic flaws, depending on the manner the previous owner wore his timepiece.

One way is to judge the condition of the dial. Watches that have lived a long rough life have a tendency to have faded dials and bezels, especially if the dial has been exposed to the sun daily for years. It’s not just the heat but the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays that will cause dial fading.

Here’s an example of an old SKX025J that predates the SKX025K that is sold today. The watch is non-functional and the eBay sellers sold this as a parts watch.

An early model Japan-made, SKX025J mid-sized diver. This watch was probably made between 1996 and 2001.

Conclusion

Manually tracing the production year of a Seiko watch can be very tricky at best. If you have a relatively little known caliber or model you may be forced to resort to estimating by the watch design and text markings.

If all fails, post a question in the Seiko & Citizen Watch Forum as there will be a few kind and helpful members who may recognize the caliber or watch model. 🙂

Comments

Thank you for you help. Did the markings I mentioned tally with an original watch. Also the slight play of the bezel across the face it actually click when I move it. Is that normal. Lastly how long approx. would a SKX013 run after wearing for a day?

I was away on a trip to Borneo at the time you sent in your question and I apologize for the belated reply.

The 2620 is a quartz caliber from the late 1970s, but I’m not sure how long Seiko made the caliber before it was discontinued. It’s a simple gents’ watch with 2 jewels and no day/date calendar. I’m inclined to think that your watch was made on August 1978. It was fully Japan made by Seiko’s Daini factory. I’m sorry I can’t provide you with its history as it was considered one of the generic Seiko quartz watches in its time, nothing really significant about it.

Thank you so very much for the info on the Seiko 5126. I don’t know how you find the time to provide so much detail to so many people but I’m so glad you do. I’m surprised to learn the watch could be valued at up to USD250 and glad I don’t have to worry about wearing it or insure it but really, this watch is priceless to me because of the connection to my wife’s dad. I will continue to wear it and pass it down to my son. Thank you again and I hope you enjoyed your vacation in Borneo!

You’re welcome. 🙂 There are very few surviving 5126 watches today compared to other calibers of its era and I didn’t know about its existence until I found that Seiko 5 Sports 5126-6010, which cost me less than two hundred dollars (US). You can’t put a price to sentimental value, therefore it would be a good idea to have your watch serviced, if you haven’t done so. The rubber gaskets would have become brittle by now and the original lubricants could have gelled up over such a long time. Have its accuracy checked and the movement regulated for accurate timekeeping too.

Seiko’s old calibers are really robust and long lasting. I’ve had two 7s26 Seiko 5s fail on me despite careful wearing, but none of my vintage Seiko watches have let me down so far.

Very Informative and helpful site! I recently got the Seiko bug and picked up my first old Seiko automatic for $25 which I think is a bargain. It’s a 7005-8032 17 Jewel Date, water resistant, with the serial number 424664 so if I’m reading your guide correctly this would make it a Feb 1974, with production number 4664 for that month? Also has Japan -M under the serial number on the caseback. Not sure what the M stands for. It’s keeping great time and only needs a new crystal to bring it up to scratch.(Pardon the pun)
I’m busy saving now for a 1968 Grand Seiko Hi Beat:) It really is a disease this Seiko collecting! Thanks for an excellent website.Best Regards Dave Baldry

Hello! I am having an insanely difficult time trying to figure out any of the details of my Seiko. I inherited it from my Grandmother when she passed away almost 10 years ago. It is in great condition and keeps time perfectly, and I would like to know more about it. The face is signature Seiko blue, and only the word “Seiko” appears on it. “Twelve” is denoted as ||, while the rest of the numbers are only |. The back says:
SEIKO
BASE METAL TOP
ST. STEEL BACK
982581
1100-5319
JAPAN – H (and a mark like a “z” appears here)

I know from your posts that it was made in August of the ninth year of some decade, and was #2581 of that month. I can’t find any watches like it through all of my online searching, and am hoping you can shed some light on it’s story. Thank you in advance!

Can you help with info on a Seiko I got?Age,value,collectibility,etc. I paid very little but watch is only in fair condition,dirty,and didn’t run.Now after removing back cover and cleaning, everything works and it keeps perfect time. Square, gents,dress watch,steel adjustible band (SQ on clasp). Analog face; second hand; day(English-French)-date @3o’clock; SQ on face@6o’clock;no #s on face only slashes. Back:water resistant stainless steel 8123-5129 AO inside a square box 330999. Inside:adjusted five jewels Seiko Time Corp. Japan A lightning bolts. On face underwhere 6 would be: 8123-5140T and lightning bolts. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!

I sincerely apologize for the belated response due to unavoidable health circumstances. I don’t think there were any counterfeit 7009 caliber Seiko 5s in its time, because there’s no record of anyone having one and describing one in watch forums. However, if you are able to take clear pictures of your watch (front and back) and upload them to the TinyPic image sharing site and reply to this comment with the link to your images, only then I can ascertain if your watch is truly genuine.

Right now all I can tell you is that your watch could have been made on Sept 1991. Seiko used the 7009 extensively for its low end models (including the Seiko 5) until 1996, when it was replaced by the 7s26 caliber that’s still being used to this day.

As many have said earlier, this is indeed a valuable and hard worked resource on Seiko and relevant stuff, amongst other. However I was wondering, if we are to date our Seiko’s the way you tell us to, how can we do it for quartz watches as there is no resource for that on the web which contains complete list of quartz movements production start and stop dates, can you help us out and create such a list from your extensive experience?

Secondly, are Seiko movements only are used in Alba watches or there are some Alba’s own movements too? And can we date Alba watches the same way we can date Seiko’s as you have taught?

Lastly, I have a titanium scuba 200m water resist date Seiko which I believe was a Japan only model, can you provide approx. production date for it?

Hello Seiko Seekers!!!
My dilemma started when I acquired a Seiko ladies watch from my mother. I don’t know how long she’s had it but she gave it to me to have it appraised. None of the places I went to gave me concrete answers because they don’t know much about vintage seiko watches. I would like to describe it to the best of my ability: Its gold toned with stainless steel back, has a small quartz or diamond in the 12’o clock(not sure), no numbers in front, only small lines, no seconds only hour and minutes hand, and the serial # is 950790, 4N00-5060 with the letters RO inside a box frame next to these numbers. Its in xcellent condition but i don’t know to turn it on because i fear that i might break it. Should I hold on to it because it’s rare or unique? or i can sell it but i don’t know its value. My Mom tells me to research about it before i make drastic and impulsive decisions. PLEASE HELP, QUARTZIMODO AND SEIKO SEEKERS!!

Hi – The Online form doesn’t appear to work at the moment. I have a Seiko 5 Sport Speed Timer (SN 290419) that I’d like to part with (Trade or Sell) in order to aquire more Seiko’s. I’m very new to the watch forums. Suggestions to it’s fair value would be greatly appreciated. I have dealt online with a lot of Muical instruments – but I imagine, there is a much more deliate protocal with watches.

Thanks for dropping by my blog and raising the question about your Seiko 5 Speedtimer.

With only the serial numbers to go with, nobody knows the model that you own because Seiko made several models bearing the Speedtimer name from different calibers.

In fact, I myself own a few Speedtimer models from the 6139 and 6138 chronograph families. You need to know the caliber/caseback details that are found at the back of your watch first.

Saying that you have a Seiko 5 Speedtimer for sale is like having a Fender Stratocaster for sale, giving only the serial numbers in the advertisement.

What year is the guitar from? Is it a pre-CBS or post-CBS model? Does the guitar happen to be the short-lived, “The Strat” from the early 80s? Is it a vintage 1954 reproduction or a Mexico made Stratocaster with a Floyd Rose tremolo and humbuckers? Rosewood or Maple fingerboard? Active or passive electronics?

It’s the same when it comes to Seiko watches. You need to be more elaborate in your description.

My friends asked if I could find some info on this watch. Its a quartz 4130-9001, 505413. From what I’ve gathered, it was made Oct 1975? yes/no? In it’s day I guess it was a pricy watch, how bout now? Thnx, Dennis

Thank you for the question. You can try to find out the value of your Lassale watch by searching for it on eBay. Because the Lassale series watches come in several caliber/movement types and differing metals (most are 18K gold; others in stainless steel) and in various conditions, it’s hard to say how much yours is worth now. All I can tell you is that your Lassale was most probably made on June 1990.

I’m not an expert in the Lassale lineup and the first thing I would do is find the average selling prices on eBay. 🙂

You have one of those stylish, asymmetrical cased Seiko Kinetic sports watches. The model code for your watch is SKA187P and was been made on August 2002. Seiko does not list your model on its official websites as the company makes too many models for them to list. They are not willing to go through the trouble of listing archived or discontinued models on their websites; so what you see on Seiko’s websites are generally the currently selling models.

In most likelihood, your Seiko 5 7009 was assembled in Hong Kong on October 1990. Some Seiko experts believe that “A2” refers to Seiko’s watch case tool and the procedure required to open the caseback but there’s no real evidence to support this assumption. “A2” could also mean the watch’s caseback is a 3rd generation type (provided older versions of 7009-3170 also exist with “A0” or “A1” instead of “A2”). The only way to be certain is to ask Seiko Japan’s officials; but whether they’re willing to give the straight answer is another matter. 🙂

I have a man’s Seiko Quartz watch with white face and numbers not nurmals. It also has no date. Here is the information on back. I would like to know approx date of it if possible. Or anything you might know about it.
Thanks

The V700-8A10 is a simple gent’s quartz dress watch on a leather strap. This watch has a Japan made movement but was assembled in Hong Kong (China). It requires a Seiko or Maxell SR616SW 1.55 volt battery which will run the watch for approximately 3 years. There’s nothing of historical significance behind this model; it’s one of the countless quartz dress models which Seiko made in the past. As such, it has little value to it and pre-owned ones usually sell between USD50-70.

Your Bell-Matic was produced on Oct 1973. Seiko Bell-Matics are easy to date because their production didn’t last over a decade, beginning from 1967 and ending sometime in 1977 or 1978. I have two 4006’s myself and they’re great watches! 🙂

Hi , enjoying reading ur blog. I have a seiko 5 with serial number 2N3639 and case number 7s26 0440 , accorind to ur previous artical i can tell it was manufactured on Nov 2002 (correct me if i am wrong) . I just curious about where was the movement assembled ? Thanks in advance .

Your Seiko watch carries the reference prefix SNXxxxK of which the lowercase “x” refers to digits, e.g. SNX113K, SNX115K, SNX551K, etc depending on the actual model. Early SNX Seiko 5s had a stainless steel caseback instead of the see-thru display back. As such, November 2002 is very likely to be its production month and year.

Basic Seiko 5 watches with the 7s26 automatic caliber have their movements made in Singapore (7s26A), while 7s26B and 7s26C versions are assembled in Malaysia. Regardless of the movement, Seiko 5 watches are cased in Hong Kong except for certain models that are purported to be wholly assembled in Japan.

Hello. Please excuse this question regarding a watch I bought for my son. It is a Pulsar, so I hope you can find the time to help. I bought a PF3291. It is an analog chronograph with a 12 hour alarm. I have tried repeatedly to set the alarm but it never sounds. The alarm seems to function solely as a regular watch. I bought the watch on eBay and if I mail it back for a refund I am required to pay for shipping and a 10% restocking fee.

I’m not familiar with individual Pulsar watches as this brand is marketed exclusively in the U.S. However, I managed to track down the model PF3291 and found out that it uses the Seiko 7T62 alarm chronograph movement. The 7T62’s alarm subdial has its own timekeeping and it can operate separately from the watch’s main time. I own a Seiko watch with the 7T62 caliber and I found that it’s tricky to set the alarm compared to its predecessor, the well loved 7T32 caliber.

Many thanks to your response. And how can i differentiate which version of caliber from the caliber bumber , in my case 7s26 0440? (i am malaysian and i would be happy if mine was made in my homeland 🙂 )

You can only determine the movement version by opening up the caseback and looking at the watch’s oscillating weight. Seiko 5 models made from 2004 onwards have a see-through, glass display back and you can view the oscillating weight. A 7s26A movement would have “7S26A” and “Seiko Time Corp” engraved on the weight. As far as I know, all 7s26A movements are Singapore made (1996-2006), while 7s26B and 7s26C variants are assembled in Malaysia. Since your watch is from 2002, it would have a Singapore assembled movement.

Hey there, I really like that you’re doing these articles.
I’m having real difficulty with determining the age of my Seiko..
Here is the back panel:
SEIKO
BASE METAL
ST.STEEL BACK
H601-5360 [R0]
JAPAN MS (thunderbolt logo)
280089

I believe this watch to be AT LEAST 20 years old, so my best guess so far is that it is from August 1982. The ‘0089’ suggests to me that it is a very early unit in the series. It has no markings for gold karat, but I would love to find this out, so that I can have a rough idea of what this may be worth as gold.

Thanks for compliments! You got the manufacturing date correct, as the H601 (“H” stands for Hybrid analog/digital display) caliber was from the early 80s. “0089” means that your watch was the 90th piece that was made on Feb 1982 for this model. The first watch off the production line will always be stamped “0000” while the second piece gets the number “0001” and the 10,000th watch would have “9999” stamped (although I’ve never seen such an example); therefore you’ll have to add one to the last four digits.

Your watch is not made of solid gold, period. Seiko real gold watches would have “18K GOLD” stamped on its caseback; and if it has a gold plated case you would see “SGP” (Seiko Gold Plated) marked. On the other hand, a Seiko watch having a gold-colored dial, hands or dial markers but has a stainless steel case, will have “ST. STEEL” or “ST. STEEL BACK” marked on its caseback, like on your watch. As for its value, square cased H601 watches fetch about USD150 or less on eBay, depending on its condition. Here’s an example of a full luminous dial, H601.

Hi,
I have an old Seiko 5 Automatic from my grandfather. He gave it to me when he went to Japan in the 80’s, if I remember right. It is working perfectly well until today though it is just kept in my drawer. The etched markings at the stainless steel back are:
1. 499885
2. 6309-8840
3. A6 enclosed in a box
4. TL
5. Water Resistant.
Based on your article, this should have been manufactured Sept of 1984, right?
I have two other questions though:
1. Why is the marking on the face different from the marking at the back as to the digits following 6309? The marking in front or in the face says 6309-820N TH. Is this a fake SEIKO 5?
2. would it be possible to know from any of the markings on the watch if the watch was made in Japan, HK or anywhere else?
Thank you so much for your very informative article.
Cheers!
Bingo

Thanks for the interesting question. I duly apologize for the late reply as I’ve been away for sometime and I hope you’ll bear with me. OK, let’s cut to the chase. Firstly, your date estimation is correct; your 6309 was indeed from September 1984.

Seiko marks the front dial and caseback codes differently for a reason. In most cases, several designs are available based on a common caliber/caseback type. By “design”, I’m referring to the dial color and style. So you can find a dozen different 6309-8840s, but each model has its unique dial code to signify the dial design/color. Having a common denominator (the caseback code) simplifies things for Seiko, in addition to cost savings by not having the caseback engraved with the exact dial code for every single variation made.

Seiko collectors usually use the rear caseback code to denote a particular model and not by the dial code, which is the “6309-820N” that you see on the dial. That is why the two identities don’t match. All other features of the watch are the same; the crystal, crown, hands, case and bracelet. I don’t think there were ever fake 6309s during the era the 6309 caliber watches were made. Since you inherited the Seiko 5 6309-8840 from your grandfather, you can safely assume that it’s all-original.

The 6309 debuted in 1977 and earlier batches were assembled in Japan by Seiko’s Suwa factory. By the mid 1980s, Seiko shifted the production of their 6309 models to Hong Kong (China). While the movement and parts were sourced from Japan, the encasement or final assembly was done in Hong Kong in order to save on production costs. How to tell if your watch was Hong Kong assembled? The absence of the word “JAPAN 6309” on the front dial. Watches that were assembled by Seiko Japan will have “JAPAN” on the dial and “JAPAN” on the caseback.

Take note that only US export models will have the exact country of manufacture and assembly printed on the dial as per the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s import labeling laws. I’ve seen examples of Seiko 7002-7009 divers bearing “Mov’t Singapore Dial Japan Cased Hong Kong” (all in uppercase letters) printed on the dial, while “Mov’t Singapore” is engraved on the caseback. Since your watch is a non-US version, Seiko simply leaves out the country of manufacture from the dial and caseback, presumably to give the dial an uncluttered look.

Thanks for submitting this interesting question and I apologize for replying late. I don’t get too many queries regarding the rarer 7T34, which is a sibling to the more common 7T32 alarm-chronograph. April 1994 is indeed, the correct production date for the 7T34. It appeared about the same time as the 7T32 and was simultaneously discontinued together by 2002. One of the last models was the SEH095P that was sold only in Southeast Asia under the Seiko Criteria sub-brand. The sole difference between the two is the circular calendar sub-dial instead of the more conventional digital date in a window on the dial. All 7T34 models were given the prefix “SEH”, which differentiates it from the 7T32’s “SDW”.

The reason you don’t see too many 7T34’s made was because Seiko made them in much smaller quantities and in fewer variations. While the first 7T34 model made was named the SEH001P, its final model was perhaps the SEH095P. There was never an “SEHA” prefix for the 7T34 because Seiko didn’t make many variations based on the 7T34. By contrast, the 7T32’s inaugural model had the prefix “SDW” and finally ended with “SDWG” (there was never an “SDWH”). When Seiko stopped making the 7T32 caliber, it was replaced by the 7T62 caliber which bears the model prefix “SNA”. The 7T62 is a simplified version of the 7T32 with less one push button and one crown deleted; possibly for cost savings. Alas, the 7T34 had no successor as it wasn’t selling very well. I guess more consumers preferred the traditional date display instead of a tiny hand pointing at even tinier date numbers in a circle. I have three 7T32s myself at the time this caliber was still sold, but found only one retailer which had an SEH005P, which had an all-black dial and a black E6 rotating flight rule bezel. Although 7T34s are quite rare, they are not necessarily valuable in the collector market.

Like most quartz Seiko watches from the 1990s and beyond, the 7T34 was assembled in Singapore with the parts imported from Japan. This is a good watch, but wasn’t as popular as the 7T32 with the traditional date window – that’s why you read very little about it. 🙂

I have a Seiko Automatic 6309-8099 815783, it has a brown dial w/ day & date and beveled crystal. I found this watch over 20 yrs ago while hiking in the mountains. I would like to know it’s date of manufacture and any other pertinent information you might be able to provide, expecially it’s value as I am considering selling it. Interesting site you have here, I never knew there were so many watch enthusiasts out there. Do you research other watches as well? I have 5 old pocket watches I would like to find out about. Thanks for your help!

The old Seiko 6309-8099 which you’ve found is a U.S. export model. It’s made in Japan back in January 1978. The faceted (beveled) crystal was a trend throughout the 1970s and Seiko didn’t make faceted crystal watches until a brief revival with their Japan market, Spirit series in the mid 2000s. The 6309 is a robust workhorse movement but was considered an economical caliber. It has 17 jewels, was assembled by Seiko’s Suwa factory in Japan and neither hacks nor hand winds (fully automatic). It was one of the numerous styles which Seiko made in the 70s and your model has no particular historical significance, except that it’s “old school” and collectible to some people.

The 7N83-0041 is a quartz ladies watch, styled after the Rolex Datejust for women. It has a classic look to it, fully Japan made. It probably dates back to August 1985. The third one (2P20-5809) is also a ladies’ dress model (U.S. version) and from the serial number it could be from March 1986 or 1996; but certainly no later than either year. Without pictures of the actual 2P20 it’s difficult to estimate the exact year as I don’t keep track of Seiko ladies’ quartz watches or their production history.

I’m sorry I can’t shed any light on pocket watches as I’ve never been interested in them. 🙁

I just wrote you and then realized I had 2 other Seiko’s to ask about: Seiko Quartz 2P20-5809 with RO in a box, serial #630598 and Seiko Quartz 7N83-0041 with A4 in a box, serial #584618. Thanks again for all that you do!

I have a seiko watch that I got from my grandmother. It reads as follows: SEIKO,200123,Base Metal Top,Stainless Steel Back,11-3409,>< (symbol that looks to triangles touching). I'm trying to find out when made, is it a real seiko, and if its worth something? Thank You! Andrea

Thanks for posting your question. The Seiko ladies’ watch that belonged to your grandmother is a Caliber 11A hand-winding (not automatic) dress model. It is a real Seiko because back then nobody made counterfeit Seiko watches. My mother has a Caliber 11A watch too, in running condition except that its original bracelet broke and there are no more replacement parts for it.

Your mom’s watch was made by Seiko’s Daini factory on October 1972, which makes it almost 40 years old today. There’s an interesting article on the Caliber 11A which you can find here. Unfortunately Seiko women’s watches are not considered as collectible items; therefore they generally fetch less than USD100 on eBay.

I have a Lassalle 5042-5049 S/N 500031. I got it in early 80’s so I suppose that is when it was made. It is Gold finish, with stainless back. I am assuming it would be gold plated not solid gold in any way (maybe they put a stailess back for durability – or would a sold gold have gold back as well? I know it was fairly expensive, so I am curious about it.

I think you made a typo and meant to say 5420-5049, because there Seiko made no such caliber as “5042”. The 5420 is a ladies’ quartz movement and yours was manufactured on October 1985, therefore you can’t possibly have gotten it in the early 1980s. Furthermore, Seiko acquired the Jean Lassale company’s watchmaking business only in 1982. Seiko 14K gold watches would have its caseback also made from gold; therefore since yours is merely gold plated, it is common for Seiko to use non-plated stainless steel backs. To my best knowledge, Seiko has never made gold plated S/S casebacks for its gold coated models.

just have a question regarding a recent purchase of a skx779k black monster on amazon via cdi watches. back of case reads kg stainless steel 7s26-0350 ao sn 1d1974..on front dial 6pm left 7s26,right 2084rz,on ss bracelet 49x8gcz and stailess steel-z written on clasp..the back is completely polished,with no satin areas,with the raised wave..the watch came in a blue box with the seiko tag and tansparent blue protective sticker on the back,with protective tape on the ss band..the blue box had no seiko name on any part,inside or out but did look similar to a seiko 5 sports watch case,minus the ‘seiko’ name..just want to be sure this is an authentic watch despite the plain box it came in..also the push pin in the clasp fine adjustment seems very difficult the remove,including the jewler with no luck,any suggestions on how to proceed on that small glitch,thanks

Congrats on your purchase of the Seiko Black Monster. 🙂 Your watch is from the “second generation” batch with an all-polished rear caseback and the cryptic “KG” initials (the early batches have no “KG” lettering and a matte, raised Tsunami logo at the center). It’s common for grey market Monsters (or any parallel import Seikos) to come in plain boxes as the original Seiko gift box is generally issued through authorized Seiko dealers. I’m quite certain yours is 100% authentic. It’s from December 2011 with the latest 7s26C movement, in case you’re curious.

The Monster’s bracelet is said to be one of the trickiest Seiko bracelets to size due to the use of pins and collars but it can be done by an experienced jeweler. Reto Castellazzi has written an excellent tutorial on how to size the Monster’s bracelet, which you can find here. If you intend to have a watch retailer size the bracelet, print the page and let him follow the instructions.

Your grandfather’s Seiko watch is very likely to have been made on December 1988. While I can’t find references to the exact model (5Y23-7000), I have very few photos of other 5Y23 models. They’re mostly from the 1980s judging from the styling and they’re all manufactured in Japan. There’s not much to say about the 5Y23 caliber; it was a simple day/date quartz movement with one jewel. It requires a Seiko/Maxell SR920SW silver oxide cell or an Energizer #391 equivalent.

Most 5Y23 Seikos were made as dress watches with a select few having sporty looks. There were no Seiko diver’s watch that was made from this movement.

Hello,I have 2 Seiko Watches,but I don’t know if they are original or replica and can you also tell me the price if you know it.The first watch is Seiko 5,crystal,water resistant,and on the back it says ” 170319 KY Stainless Steel 7123-8510-P A1″.
The second have a date but only the day and it’s Seiko 5 Automatic,Japan movt.On the back it says “701692 Stainless Steel , Water Resistant , Japan ES 7S26-3040 F ”

There were no incidences of fake 7123 Seiko watches that I know of. You have a rather unique Seiko 5 as it’s one of the very few Seiko 5 watches with a quartz movement. However, for your 7s26-3040 there is a small probability that yours might not be authentic (although I’m inclined to believe otherwise) unless I get to see actual photos of your watch.

I’m afraid I don’t quite understand what you meant by “The second have a date but only the day” because all Seiko 7s26 automatic should have both a day AND date calendar.

As many have said earlier, this is indeed a valuable and hard worked resource on Seiko and relevant stuff, amongst other. However I was wondering, if we are to date our Seiko’s the way you tell us to, how can we do it for quartz watches as there is no resource for that on the web which contains complete list of quartz movements production start and stop dates, can you help us out and create such a list from your extensive experience?

Secondly, are Seiko movements only are used in Alba watches or there are some Alba’s own movements too? And can we date Alba watches the same way we can date Seiko’s as you have taught?

Lastly, I have a titanium scuba 200m water resist date Seiko which I believe was a Japan only model, can you provide approx. production date for it?

This is a terrific question. Unlike some Swiss manufacturers, Seiko never officially published a complete history of all of their watches and clocks that they produced. There were rumors circulating on watch forums that the company didn’t archive their legacy products properly and that many of their records were either “lost or missing”. You can however visit the Seiko Museum in Tokyo to find out more about Seiko’s rich history, but the watches and clocks that are displayed there are the milestone or technology groundbreaking watches and clocks; but not generic Seiko quartz or automatic watches from the past.

Without assistance from Seiko Japan, the task of collating the entire history of Seiko quartz movements (and models) are usually left to Seiko enthusiasts.

Vintage Seiko automatic movements are much easier to identify compared to quartz because:

a) Collectors have more interest in them.
b) Mechanical watches generally last longer than quartz and are easier to repair/overhaul.

There are also exceptions to the rule. Seiko made fewer analog quartz movements in the early-to-mid 1970s compared to the 1980s and beyond, therefore it’s easier to keep track of them. Seiko all-digital watches are also collectible and there are websites that dedicate to early digital watches – not just from Seiko, but also from Citizen and Casio. High end quartz (HEQ) movements also have their place in some collectors’ hearts but there aren’t too many e.g., Seiko Lasalle aficionados around. Seiko also made quartz movements only for Seiko diver’s watches, e.g. the 7C43, 7C46 calibers. Since Seiko diver’s watches are very often discussed in forums, it’s easy to narrow down to the year that caliber was produced.

The problem lies with “garden variety” Seiko quartz watches that collectors don’t take notice of, let alone have interest in them. You’ll need to gather information from as many owners of a particular model as much as possible in order to determine what would be the earliest month or year it was made. The more owners come forward and share photos of their watches, the more accurate it becomes in determining the history of that model. Unfortunately those who participate in watch forums tend to gravitate towards certain types of Seiko watches, e.g. chronographs and divers rather than generic dress watches. I actually learned more about lesser known quartz calibers from my readers than those years I spent in watch forums. 🙂

As for your second question, Alba is a subsidiary of the Seiko Holdings Group and therefore Alba watches can be dated using the same method as Seiko watches. The same goes for Pulsar and Lorus watches as they are also Seiko’s sub-brands. Citizen watches also follows Seiko’s numbering system; albeit their vintage models used 7 digits with the second two digits representing the month (“12” for December instead of “D”).

Watch brands outside the Seiko Group that borrow Seiko’s movements have their own serial numbering system. For example, the French watch brand YEMA once used Seiko’s 4S15 automatic movement for the Yema “Seaspider” divers’ watches but they are not serialized in the same manner as Seiko. Orient Japan has also used Seiko’s quartz chronograph movements (like the 7T32 and 7T62) but they have their own serial number format.

BTW, your Seiko 7N35 Scuba 200m is very likely to have been made on July 1994. If yours is the one with a blue dial and gold accented hands, that would be the model SBBC053. It is a JDM Seiko model.

Thanks Quartzimodo you have been very helpful 🙂 and the Scuba watch I have has Grey Dial and gold accented hands, I own over 8 Seikos and around five Albas among a 100+ watch collection of mine and will love to share their pics with you 🙂

Hi, great site and lots of info. I have a Seiko watch I bought in 1971 when I was in Vietnam, the markings on the back are : 6106-6006, 178298 & japan j, has a SS back with “water resistant”. The face is black indicates a DX 25 jewel, has a window with day of week & day of month, is self winding.
she still runs great today, any info would be greatly appreciated.

Years ago my husband found a watch while he was demolishing an old building in Tasmania (Australia). We have been trying to find out what year it was made, could you please help.
lorus water resistant
mov’t Japan
V515-8A00
The whole watch glows after you hold it up to the light, so is it a uranium based watch?
It is metal based I think and has the wind button at 3 o’clock.

I wouldn’t know when your husband’s Lorus watch was made because you didn’t furnish the 6-digit serial numbers. The V515 movement was used exclusively for the Lorus brand and many of them were Disney’s Mickey Mouse watches. It appears that these watches were made in the 1990s.

There are no watch manufacturers that use uranium to light up the phosphorescent compound in the dark. Radium was however originally used in coating the hands and dial numbers in the early 1930s and was subsequently banned twenty years later due to radium’s radioactive toxicity. The lume material that your watch uses is most probably LumiBrite, a proprietary compound from Seiko that is completely safe and non-radioactive.

Sorry for the late reply. I had to do some research on your watch until I finally managed to find a picture of your particular model. Your Seiko 1N00-1E09 appears to have been made on Sept 1990 and it was the 911st piece produced for that same model and month (the first piece always starts with “0000”, not “0001”)

This watch is neither solid gold nor it is fully gold plated. It’s basically a stainless steel model with some gold accents on the bracelet links and gold toned hands and dial markers. Seiko watches with real gold will have the text “14K” or “18K” and “Gold” inscribed on the rear caseback.

I have a watch which says Seiko, Water Resistant, Quartz on the white face. On the back: Eco Drive, Titanium (and a brass-colored globe). No model number, etc. The watch is titanium color (I guess) and has a clasp band. I couldn’t find any mention of a Seiko Eco Drive. Thank you for posting so much information.

You have rather odd situation. The “Eco Drive” is a registered trademark of the Citizen Watch company and no other watch manufacturer can use that name. As such, there is no such thing as a “Seiko Eco Drive”. I suspect that somebody had lost your Seiko watch’s original caseback and substituted it with that from a Citizen Eco Drive watch, which happens to fit perfectly. I’ll need to see actual photos of your watch and you can upload them to Tinypic.com and reply to this post with the link to your watch photos.

Hello
I have a ladies Seiko watch.The numbers on the back are as follows: 1N2986 and 1520 3339.This watch has not been worn often,still in the case and outside box.Can you please tell me when it was made?
Thanks so much
Fran

I own a women’s Seiko quartz “Sports 100” watch, 2A23-0279 [A4]. The serial number number is 590879. Based on the excellent information on your Web-site, I assume that my watch was produced in September 1985.

The face of the watch is a very dark-gray with white time markings, white hands, and a red second hand. It shows day/date, and reads “Seiko Quartz,” “SQ Sports 100,” and “Japan 2A23 // 0490” in very small lettering along the bottom.

The watch has a thin red bezel and the stem is located at 4:00 versus the usual 3:00. The band is bracelet-type in the very dark-gray color.

I haven’t been able to find any information about my watch or find any similar photographs due to the colors (dark gray and red). Any information that you can provide about my watch would be very much appreciated.

Thanks for the question. The 2A23 was a 1980s quartz movement for ladies’ models and Sept 1985 as its production date sounds about right. I don’t have any photos of your model and if you are unable to Google for the 2A23-0279, neither can I.

I can however tell you that your watch was made for the North American market and the detailed (and verbose) description of materials used is typical of U.S. Seiko models. The 2A23 caliber is a simple 2-jeweled, quartz movement with a date display. It requires a Seiko/Maxell SR621SW or Energizer #364 with a battery life rated for 2.5 years. Like most 80s Seiko quartz watches, the movement has a trimmer capacitor for the Seiko technician to make very fine accuracy adjustments. When your next battery replacement comes, you might want to have the rubber gasket replaced and the movement geartrain re-oiled if you haven’t done so already.

I wish I could tell you more, but unfortunately that’s all I know about this watch caliber.

i have what i think is a older mickey mouse watch i have seen the older posts saying they are not colletable,and thats fine i do wish however to date it i got it from my dad many years ago and it was found laying in the bottom of my watch case he is the sn 752266 model 5p31-7009 it just brings up old thoughts of my dad i think i would give it to my son to hold on to thanks again

Hello!
is there a fake new seiko monster?
i went to pertama complex last time and have a look at the new monster but it doesnt feels right.both the price a way cheap and the watch it self.ur opinion sir?
sorry i drop u a message last time. =P
maybe it didnt reach u.hehe

I’m not clear with your statement “the new monster” as I’m not sure whether you’re referring to a brand new SKX779K Monster or an entirely different model. What was the actual model? Was it on stainless steel bracelet or a rubber strap? Do you remember the actual watch store in Pertama Complex that you saw that particular watch? 🙂

Hi Quartzimodo,
I recently bought a new old stock Seiko Baby Arnie H556-5029. the watch has never been worn, has the orginal box and manual. The serial no indicates that the watch was manufactured in April 1984. Is this model sought after by collectors, and what ould the value be.
great forum,
Regards
Clive

That’s the new 4R36 Seiko Monster with the orange dial and black dial ring and black bezel. On eBay some Singapore based sellers are offering this model for USD260 (RM790) therefore if you can get at a lower price, you’ve got a very good deal. 🙂

I’m familiar with Desmond, one of the young sales assistants who works at the Mee Sing Watch store and its owner, Victor. This store never sells any fake watches of any brand, period. Furthermore, the SRP315K is too new in the market and no one has ever made a counterfeit version of this model yet. Buy with confidence. 🙂

I have a relatively small collection of Seiko 5 dress (?) watches, most of which are vintage and I thought – well, my wife did – that I was the only sad git who had any interest in them. I was curious about the ages of the watches, which I bought simply because I liked them, and they were quite cheap, so I googled Seiko 5s and discovered this site.

I think I’ve worked out that my oldest, a DX, is from 1975 and the newest, a 7s26b is from 2010.

Can I post pictures (I use photobucket) ? The information from past posts has helped enormously. I have no interest in the actual value of my watches, I just love them (got all of them from E-bay, and 7 of them came from India) but I’d love to know if I’ve got the dates/origins right.

You are indeed correct in saying that your Seiko DX was from 1975, because the DX series was primarily a 1970s range of affordable Seiko automatic watches. Sure, you can post links to your Photobucket, Picasa, Flickr, etc images of your timepieces, no problem.

I would exercise caution when buying used Seiko watches from eBay sellers in India though. I’m not saying they’re cheats but I’ve seen quite a few examples of “Franken Seikos” for auction, i.e., Seiko watches cobbled together with parts salvaged from another different model. From my understanding, spare parts for vintage Seiko watches are hard to come by in India and it’s common to see a Seiko watch with a dial, hands and caseback from another model. It’s no big deal unless you’re a stickler for authenticity. 🙂

The 7s26B caliber had a rather short production run compared to the original 7s26A which was produced from 1996 to 2006. By late 2011 or early 2012, the 7s26B was superseded with the 7s26C caliber with minor design updates.

Hello!
I’ve been searchin for a while now, and I cant find any answers. My wife got a Seiko from her late grandmother, and wants to know when it’s from.
On the backside it’s printed:
In a circle around the plate: SGP BACK ST.STEEL 21-0062
First horizontal line: SEIKO
Second: the logo
Third: 1 D 0 0 1 2
Fourth : JAPAN – A

I am by no means a Seiko purist, just bought a few watches because I like the look and feel of them. I’ve had the backs off most of them and have yet to find a Franken Seiko (like it !), or at least the movement numbers match the backs, but it really wouldn’t matter. As long as they work, I’m happy.

Sure, no problem. Seiko used metal calendar discs for all of its automatic models until the introduction of the 7s26A caliber in 1996, which uses plastic day/date discs. Putting it simply, if your automatic watch isn’t part of the 7s-caliber family and was made before 1996, it’s metal. I’m not too sure about Seiko analog quartz watches as some calibers used plastic discs while others used aluminum. However, the black-on-white day-of-the-week inner disc that’s made of plastic seems to fluoresce under UV or black light while the date part doesn’t.

Hi there i have a seiko watch that was my dads it is a 5 sport 7015-7010
the serial number is 2D3570 it also has japan-l on the back case on the dial it has speed timer written in red i would like to know the year the watch was made and any other info thanks john

Your watch was made by Seiko’s Daini factory in Japan on Dec 1972. The 7015-7010 is particularly a collectible watch and is hard to find in mint condition. The 7015 movement is a “flyback” chronograph which means the sweep second hand can be reset at anytime while it’s running. Conventional mechanical chronographs on the other hand, need to be stopped first before the stopwatch can be reset.

The “Seiko 5 Sports Speedtimer” brand was exclusive to Japan, while Seiko watches bearing the text “Seiko Speedtimer” were for the worldwide export market. The 7015-7010 model carried an original price tag of 14,000 Japanese Yen and that translates to USD46 back in 1972, or USD252 today. This is a nice watch and I hope your watch’s reset mechanism is working perfectly to this day. 🙂

thank you for the information the watch is in perfect condition the strap needs some attention though. the watch lives in a draw and i bring it out from time to time to keep it ticking over.the info you gave me will be written down and put away with the watch.
regards
john

Hi there. I have a Seiko Quartz watch that was my Father’s: Model SGS050; Caliber H801-701M R 2; back: H801-7028 box A4; serial 460095. It’s analog, dark silver face, with a digital date/timer window in the 6 o’clock position. Unfortunately, when my Dad owned it, he had links removed to make it smaller, instead of using the adjustments on the bracelet. I’d like to know when it was made, what it’s value might be, and if it’s worth getting a new Seiko bracelet, or should I get a leather, generic replacement. Thank you for your help. Michael

Your analog-digital, H801-7028 (SGS050P) was from the 1990s therefore it was made on June 1994. This model was assembled by the Seiko factory in Singapore. Is it worth replacing the bracelet? That depends whether the replacement bracelet can still be found and if the price is reasonable to you. Since this watch has regular lugs, you can easily use a leather strap in place of the original replacement bracelet. Try a brown or dark tan strap because brown and gold tones compliment one another nicely. 🙂

I found one example of an H801-7028 on eBay, which was won for only USD31. Note that because this was the only recent example on eBay, therefore it doesn’t reflect the indicative market price of this model. It so happens that it’s an auction and nobody outbid the winning bidder. I think your watch is worth more than that, but no more than USD150.

Your dad’s watch (6539-7020) was made on June 1986. It’s very likely that the case is gold plated rather than made of solid gold, because Seiko made very few solid gold models while gold plated ones are quite common. If the caseback does NOT indicate the word “18K Gold” but rather “SGP” (or anything else), then it’s gold plated.

There’s not much to tell about this particular watch, other than that it was one of the various inexpensive Seiko quartz dress watches from the 1980s with just a date display and no sweep second hand. The five-jewel, 6539 quartz movement runs up to 3 years on a Seiko/Maxell SR920SW or an Energizer #371 silver oxide cell. Unfortunately, quartz Seiko gent’s dress models don’t fetch a high price on the used market; generally no more than USD100 unless it’s made from solid gold. In this case, the value of the watch would be higher due to the metal used (gold) rather than the watch itself.

I was given a gold tone seiko that has these numbers on the back, I’m not sure of where it came from but I was told it was purchased about 8 months ago although from what I am reading in your advice column above, it looks to be much older than that. The numbers I have on the back that seem to be of relevance are 410816 and 7430-5079 A0. Any information would be greatly appreciated!

Your Seiko 7430-5079 is an export model meant for the USA. It’s a simple gent’s dress watch and there’s nothing really special about it in terms of historical significance and value. As a matter of fact, nearly all Seiko quartz dress watches fall into the non-collector’s category, except for the rare Seiko Lassale series.

This watch was very likely to have been made on January 1984. It was fully Japan-assembled by Seiko’s (then) Daini factory. Its 2-jeweled movement requires a Seiko or Maxell TR721SW silver oxide cell.

Hi,
I just bought a supposely “brand new” Seiko SKZ211K from SkyWatches aka Watch Fashion Pte Singapore. Paid almost RM600 for it. It comes with a tag,guarantee card + box which makes me feel so assuring at first.
However, when I reached home and examine it closely, I was totally disappointment with it conditions and quality. There were multiple scratch marks on the backcase. Closer examination of the dial, I found a smeared mark like some kind of ink droplets being hurriedly wiped off. Also found inside the dial is a strand of lint stuck between the inner rotating compass ring. The compass ring is also loose and can move side to side. Worse, both the crowns are loose and
there are side to side slackness. In this condition, I am very doubtful of its water resistance capability even for washing hand over a tap.
I really hope you can give me your opinion..it this the way Seiko design it, is it normal for this model?? If not, can I claim from Thong Sia here?
Serial No. 241255 Caliber. 7S36-01 EO
Date of purchase: 17-11-2012

Sorry to hear that. If you’ve bought this watch online, take clear photos of your watch (use a digital camera with a macro mode) and submit them via email to Mr Adrian Low at skywatch@gmail.com for his attention. The compass ring is supposed to be loose but should not have too much free play sideways. The crown should also be fairly tight when screwed into the case.

I suspect this could have been a watch that’s returned by a previous customer or one that could have been tampered with. There should not be any foreign objects like lint inside the dial if it’s straight from the factory. Your watch is fairly new; as a matter of fact it made on April 2012 from the serial number. It cannot be from 2002, because this model only appeared in 2005. Brand new watches should never have scratch marks on the caseback, unless it’s a new old stock piece, a factory reject or was simply mishandled.

Since this watch was sold by a Singaporean dealer, Thong Sia Malaysia is likely not to honor the warranty although Thong Sia Singapore might – on condition that the warranty card has the seller’s stamp on it. I would however suggest that you contact Mr Low via email and follow up with a telephone call at (65)65351377.

You’re welcome. Please update the status of your claim if you’ve managed to get the matter resolved. This is the first time I’ve heard something like this concerning Skywatches, because for years they have had a solid reputation and track record (based on discussions in various Seiko watch forums). 🙂

Found your interesting site via Google searching “Seiko Sport 50 7N43-7B40”. The search results showed a page from 9/21/10 discussing the mfg. date of that or similar watch. I am confused after searching your comments, looking for that specific question and comment and not finding it. Not that it matters, but do you delete some archives?

More important to me is information about the previously-owned Seiko Quartz watch (my 1st) I received today. It’s a Sports 50 7N43-7B40 followed by a box with “A4” within. S/N 554001. Mov’t JAPAN 7N43-7C38 R 2 (indicated below “6 position” on dial).

Please tell me what you can about this watch, but specifically, does (should) the bezel rotate? I assumed that it did rotate anti-clockwise, but on 1st attempt with only moderate force, it didn’t.

Any additional info about mfg. date, orig. price, care and feeding etc. would be appreciated.

My late father had a saying when describing someone he thought was lacking in intelligence. He’d say, “He didn’t know whether to sh_t or wind his watch…”

Another favorite was, “The difference between humor and odor is, humor is a shift of wit…”

Thank you for explaining your predicament in great detail. I had to do some looking up and found an example of a Seiko 7N43-7B40 here. The styling of this model is reminiscent of a Seiko watch from the 1990s, therefore I would say your Seiko Sports 50 was manufactured on May 1995 by the Seiko overseas factory in Singapore. The official reference model code for your watch is SGG450P.

I’ve never seen this particular model before because Seiko made too many watch models for any single Seiko watch enthusiast to know them all. I think your watch’s bezel is fixed (non-rotating) as the bezel’s gentle curves are more towards aesthetics rather than for a good finger grip. If the bezel refuses to budge on applying brute force, it’s not meant to rotate. Some Seiko sports watches have fixed bezels, despite having the minute numerals engraved on the bezel. True Seiko diver’s watches on the other hand, have rotating bezels (except for all-digital readout diver’s watches like the Seiko NX-series diving computers.

Since your watch is over 17 years old, if you plan to wear it as a daily “beater” have the rubber O-rings replaced at your next battery change and the movement lubricated by an experienced jeweler/watch repairer. Until you have all the rubber O-rings replaced, try not to immerse the watch in water – that means, no swimming in the pool with it. It’s a good idea to wipe the watch (and bracelet) with a soft cloth or a tissue paper, lightly soaked with a very mild soap solution after taking it off for bedtime. Window cleaning fluid also works well (provided your skin isn’t allergic to the ammonia solution) as it helps to bring out the shine from the watch’s bracelet and case. I got this idea years ago (using Windex glass cleaner) from observing a pair of sales assistants clean their shop’s watches on display.

Make sure you wipe the back of the bracelet too, where it makes contact with your wrist. Human skin excretes sweat and grease, which invites bacteria growth. People who don’t take care of their daily worn watches tend to have watches that literally stink. Watch collectors have nickname for accumulated grime; we call it “wrist cheese” 😉

On a final note, NEVER change the calendar date when the watch is showing a time between 9pm and 2am. The date mechanism can get damaged if you do so, resulting in costly repairs. If you have to adjust the calendar to the correct day and date, turn the main hands to 6 o’clock first (am or pm doesn’t matter), adjust the calender and reset the watch to the current time. With regards to the value of this model, it’s not much – generally no more than USD100.

Aloha Sir , andstill thanks for your Journal of wisdom and help :
I had a 7s26-0028 scored here,when I asked you about it you came really close to the information I needed. A fellow forumer help me out to pin point it to what actually I had rceived. ( ……. It turns out I have a (SKX173) in my hands, and did not know anything except what you advised me in, and that was very appreciated Sir. I was going to get rid of it, maybe a trade or swap, but now I am going to keep it. Thank you Sir for all the help and knowledge given to a ……Noobie?, in this area of High tech watchs I appreciate it greatly to know that I have found great help amoung others that are experiencing watch collecting and administrative advisor’s and people like yourself.
Tahnk you very much ……….LongBike.

Alohaagain Sir I forgo to give you the info of this watch to be sure it is a was said.
Note : Moment Malaysia/ St.Steel/SEIKO 7S26-0028/ [A0] /
Sc uba Diver’s / Ser. No. 570267 / crown is at 19 minutes
/ day/date is at 3:00 / it has english and spanish / Face Dial White lettering top/ (Red)Divers 200m / between 8:00 & 7:00 Mov’t / 7:00 & 6:00 Malaysia / second hand – round white dot /. When I put the two together they dont differ at all
1- SKX173 and other well I did not know what it is, no papers or box .
Dial is very nice and all lumes work greatly. They look identical side by side. Caliber is 7S26A inside. Guy said he thinks he got it year ….2000 or so.
Tank you again Sir.

Thank you for giving me some vital, fresh information regarding the 7s26A. This the first time I’ve heard about an SKX173 diver’s watch bearing an early, Malaysia-made (7s26-0028) with the older 7s26A movement. Most examples of the SKX173 I’ve seen have the Singapore-made (7s26-0029) 7s26A movement, OR a Malaysia-made, 7s26B movement. From the serial number which you furnished, your SKX173 has to be from July 2005.

If this is true, this now means that Seiko was using both their Singapore and Malaysia factories to manufacture the original 7s26A automatic movements. Personally I find to be rather odd, because Seiko usually assigns only one of its overseas production plants to assemble movements, not two. Perhaps a production overlap (or “parallel run”) did happen during that time, as Seiko Singapore’s factory totally ceased making the entire 7s-series movements by 2008. Since then, Seiko’s non-Japan made automatic movements are assembled by their Malaysia based plant.

Don’t fret about it, as the movements from either factory are of the same quality. 🙂

Aloha Sir and thank you for this information needed:
The other SKX173 I have that I mentioned has this for a Serial Number:(910395). This I got intack in a box (ToTal Brand New one(pillow&Card), complete both books,no tag’s, price tag on box reads ($425.00).This one has a dial reading ….. (4:00(R2)5:00) 5:00(7S26-1127)6:00 /6:00(Malaysia)7:00 / 7:00(Mov’t)8:00 / Day/Date-3:00/Crown@19-minutes / Red-200m/ 7s26=0028 [A0]/SSteel …. Also a Flat Vent strap(B.New )
w/Free NATO 3 ring Brn.Strap./// I have two more here need to ID’ed but will make another thread after this one. Thank you sir for your trusted information.

Aloha again Sir:(Second sending) Seiko-6309-7290- A (SUWA mark)/[F1]/ser.no-380855/(Blk.Dial),all white letters: Water150mResist /3:00-Day/Date/6:00-6309-735MR /In Red-200m
Next: Seiko-6309-729/[F1]/SUWA mark/ser.no(4N1051)/Blk.Dial-6:00-6309-735MR(suwa)/R.Strap/Box,Pillow,Card,Istr.Booklet.
Mov’t-6309A/Los Angeles, Calif.
T
_______________________________________________________
Sir the(Previous Watch asking before this one on the 6:00 reading it was also – 6309-735MR-suwa). Aloha and thank you again Sir for all this information.

Hi,
Remember..on 20 Nov.2012, I wrote about a faulty Seiko SKZ211k watch that I purchased from Skywatches.com?
Well, I am glad to inform you that the matter has been settled.
Today, I received the brand new replacement SKZ211K from Skywatches. I am very happy with the replacement piece as
it is in a perfect condition.
I must mention here that the Customer Service at Skywatches is amazing with prompt response to every inquiries
that you may have.
I also hv had a pleasant experience dealing with MR.Adrian
Low of Skywatches.com whose honesty and service goes beyond my expectation.

Glad to know that the matter has been resolved between Skywatches.com.sg and you. In some cases, an online seller appoints a third party drop shipper to send the item on their behalf upon receiving a purchase order.

Since the product (in your case, the watch) is never actually seen by the original seller, the drop shipping merchant might sometimes send a defective item. Nevertheless it’s still the seller’s responsibility to rectify the situation.

Mr Low has decades of experience in the watch sales business (so I’ve been told) and I don’t think he personally handled the original watch that you received. If he saw the condition of the Landshark that was about to be shipped, it wouldn’t have passed his quality standards. So now the matter is now between him and the party responsible for sending the first watch. 🙂

My apologies for the delayed reply. The Seiko watch that you have is the iconic 4004 series, analog quartz model from the seventies. Early quartz Seiko watches have a bulbous, separate battery compartment that you can unscrew with the edge of a small coin without removing the caseback. Your Seiko SQ was made for the US market by Seiko’s Daini plant on December 1976. While the 4004 series models are a collectible, their second hand value varies from USD50 up to USD250, depending on the condition and styling.

This is a nice watch and inherits the styling of Seiko’s automatic watches of the era. Its 2-jeweled movement needs an Energizer #301 1.5 volt, silver oxide cell with an operational life of less than 2 years.

Hi My father has a seiko digital watch it has quartz lz on the frount the numbers on the back are 710560 and 0439-4009 water resistant, base metal top st. ase you able to tell us about this watch thanks

Hi My father has a seiko digital watch it has quartz LC on the frount the numbers on the back are 710560 and 0439-4009 water resistant, base metal top st. ase you able to tell us about this watch thanks

Your father’s old Seiko digital watch was made on January 1977, from the serial number that you provided. This is a model that was originally made and shipped to the USA. I found a good website that has a reference to your dad’s watch. Although the site says that the 0439-4009 was introduced on April 1977, their estimate may be slightly inaccurate.

I highly doubt that this model had a production run for ten years; therefore it cannot be from January 1987. By the mid 1980s, Seiko had moved on to analog-digital watches and even their all-digital models had undergone styling changes. Digital watches are rarely produced for more than 3 years before their models are discontinued and replaced with more modern ones.

Hello sir,
I have a golden Seiko 5 (7s26c)that I purchased not long ago. I sent it back to Seiko in N.J. to have the crystal replaced and in the process they scratched the case and replaced it. My question is I cannot locate a serial # anywhere on the back of this watch. The only #’s I have been able to locate are 7S26C stamped on the rotor and 7S26-0490 [AO] on the back cover and “movement singapore” WP and of course the large letters SEIKO. I cannot find the first sign of a straight line of characters or anything resembling a serial#. Am I not understanding something, or what am I missing here. Thanks in advance for your knowledge. You are providing a great service.
Mike

I truly apologize for the delayed response. Here’s the reason why your watch was returned by Seiko USA’s service center with a new caseback but without the serial number. Serial numbers are unique to any Seiko watch of the same caliber and caseback code (in your case, the 7s26-0490). The serial numbers are laser etched or stamped at the assembly plant just prior to packing and shipping and correspond to the year, month and running unit number.

When the caseback is changed, you get the exact caseback model – except that there will be no serial number. The most probable reason is because Seiko service centers are not equipped to etch or stamp serial numbers. The Seiko factory also does not issue replacement casebacks with pre-stamped serial numbers because they wouldn’t know in advance which watches will need a caseback replacement. Therefore it’s much easier for them to provide replacement casebacks without the original serial numbers on them.

I’m pretty certain that your original caseback had “Mov’t Malaysia” stamped on it, because 7s26C movements are made in Malaysia. “Mov’t Singapore” applies to all 7s26A and early batches of 7s26B movements.

First off this site is great and you are well informed on the Seiko brand awesome job, I a few years back working at a bar a customer had left their watch behind and after so long of it sitting in the lost and found we have a free for all for the employees. Everyone passed up this watch and so I ended up with it, it is stamped on the stainless back water resistant and the number is 5y23-8049. I have been trying to find out more info about it and all I have found was an E-Bay selling of one and it did not list much info about it other than its condition and calling it a vintage 1970’s Japan Quartz watch and was being sold for $80 + shipping. I would appreciate any additional info you may have about this watch cause I almost tossed it thinking that battery replacement wasn’t worth the cost vs. the watch value but not sure now.

The Seiko 5Y23-8049 which you had found is a generic Seiko gents’ dress watch. There were two variants of this U.S. export model: the SCZ153P (silver) and the SCZ155P (black). The Seiko 5Y23 is NOT a watch from the 1970s, but from the 1990s. In your case, it was made in Singapore on June 1998.

I did a quick check on eBay and found that the average selling price of used 5Y23 models is USD75. This is not considered a collectible Seiko watch and its average asking price reflects its low demand.

Your Seiko 11-0450 is a hand-winding, mechanical ladies’ watch. It is NOT a quartz model, therefore it doesn’t run on batteries. You’ll have to wind the main crown until it feels tight and your watch should be ticking. If it doesn’t run at all then it needs to be repaired (probably a problem with the main spring or escapement).

The date of manufacture is February 1973 and it was made at the Daini factory in Japan.

Hi,
I’ve been looking for some more info on my watch, on the back it has 7T42-6A6A 140085 JAPAN D 10 BAR. On the face at the bottom it has 7T42 6A7L T2 and SQ100 Quartz Chronograph Titanium. I think its a 1990’s watch.
Seen info and pictures for other Sq100’s and 7T32’s but can’t find much about this particular movement/dial or 7T42’s.

Your Seiko 7T42-6A6A carries the reference code SDX056J. The 7T42 caliber is very similar to the more common, 7T32 alarm-chronograph models; except that yours has a useful counter-clockwise, countdown timer. The reason it’s hard to find pics of Seiko 7T42s is because this caliber didn’t live a long market lifespan compared to the 7T32. In fact, I was able to amass only a handful of 7T42 pics from the Internet, while photos of 7T32 models are abundant.

I think the 7T42 models were originally priced much higher than the 7T32 series watches and were discontinued early due too poor worldwide sales. It’s such a shame, because the 7T42 is a very interesting caliber. Perhaps in those days, consumers were much more price sensitive when it came to Seiko watches. 🙂

Your estimation of your watch’s production era is correct as both the 7T32 and 7T42 calibers debuted in the very early 1990s. Therefore your SQ100 was made on April 1991. As this is considered a collectible 7T-series Seiko watch, I hope you’ll keep it and pass the watch down to your descendants. 🙂

Aloha and thank you very much Sir. Your reply is not considered late, but well waiting for because you have what many of us need for our knowings. Replies from you is a very worth while wait for all this information giving so freely.
I am sure many would agree with me. Many of use would not know what to do beyond owning these watchs, and you have given us valuable information to what we have invested into. Again thank you for your expertise and knowledge in helping us through our time in ….. Horology.
Aloha and Mahalo Sir ……… LongBike

Hi,
I have a Seiko 5 7009-3040 F nr 706078 and I’ve been looking for some information about it. I don’t really care how much it’s worth but I would like to know when was it made.
It’s blue inside, has a Quartz inscription and has no day/date indicator.
Thanks a lot,
Vita

Something is definitely not right with your watch. The Seiko 7009 is a fully automatic watch movement with a day/date display, not a quartz one. What you have is a “Franken Seiko”, not an original Seiko watch. Either your watch is fitted with a 7009-3040 caseback (as the original one had been lost or damaged) or it’s a 7009 automatic with a non-original dial. Does your watch’s second hand rotate across the dial smoothly or does it tick once every second?

Hi again,
the watch was given to me by a friend and I thought it was fake Seiko as well but after examining it I discovered it has an original Seiko glass and caseback. It runs smoothly.
Could it be a model made for the Asian market?
Regards,

I have a Seiko Mickey Mouse Kinetic Watch with date function. On the back are the following numbers:662472 and 3M22-OC59.
It also reads WAter Resistant, Top Sapphire, Crystal St. Steel, Base Metal.
Any ideas when this was made or if it is a collector item?

Your Seiko Kinetic watch was very likely to have been made on June 1996. The 3M22 is a long discontinued Kinetic caliber and appeared in the early 1990s. Is this a collector’s item? Most probably not to Seiko watch collectors, but may be sought after by Disney cartoon character and Mickey Mouse memorabilia fans. 🙂

Hi and thanks for running this helpful site. I was hoping you might be able to tell me when my watch was made and what battery it takes. I removed the battery years ago and now can’t use it for reference.

Sorry for the belated response. I looked up your Seiko watch and managed to find some information about it. Your 7123-5069 requires a Seiko/Maxell SR1130SW or an Energizer #390 silver oxide battery. This movement has 2 jewels and should run for 5 years between battery changes. The 7123 caliber surfaced sometime towards the very late 70s and was used in a number of Seiko gent’s watches, including the rare Seiko 5 Quartz. Your watch is likely to be a U.S. export model and was made in Japan at the Daini factory.

I am seeking information on a NOS women’s watch I own. It reads on the back: Seiko. Water resistant-6. Japan-A. Stainless Steel 2406-0050. 458561. The front bears a month window with both a numeral month and a japanese character. It has its original bracelet and also a sticker in the wrist band clasp picturing how to remove links, with info in japanese.

Great question. You have one the rare, almost forgotten Seiko “Joyful” models that were made for ladies in the seventies for the Japan market. It can also be worn by young teens and I’m almost certain that I once had a “Joyful” model in my very early teens as full sized, gents’ watches were too large for my wrist. 🙂

This 23-jeweled watch has auxiliary hand-winding operation to help fully wind the automatic movement quickly. It is also a high-beat movement (28,800 beats/hr) which makes it more slightly more accurate compared to the standard, 21,600 bph mechanical movement. Sadly, Seiko doesn’t make high beat movements for ladies’ models anymore since the company feels that the majority of their female customers prefer the convenience and the high accuracy of battery operated, quartz watches.

The lightning-like, “Japanese character” on the dial isn’t actually a character, but a Seiko symbol that identifies that this watch was manufactured by its Daini factory back then (now known as Seiko Instruments Inc). AFAIK, all vintage Seiko ladies’ watches from the 70s and 80s came from the Daini plant (the other being the Suwa factory).

Your timepiece was manufactured on May 1974, which now makes it almost 39 years old.

You happen to have a very rare and seldom seen Seiko 2517 automatic. There were two calibers that were made, the 2517A and 2517B versions with either 17 or 21 jewels.

Some 2517 models were marketed under the Seiko Diamatic and Seiko-matic Lady Calendar ranges in the middle 1960s. Without doubt, your watch was from January 1970 and it was fully made in Japan by Seiko’s Daini factory. If you haven’t sent your watch for a full service for the past 42 years and intend to wear it regularly, I would recommend that you do so. An experienced watchmaker or repairer should be able to clean its movement thoroughly, re-lubricate its moving parts, change the rubber water-resistant gaskets and reset its accuracy.

The lightning symbol on the face represents a Daini-made movement or watch. Ladies’ Seiko timepieces were exclusively made by the Daini plant (now known as Seiko Instruments Inc) back in its time.

I just bought Series 5 SNKa28K1 Seiko. It appears to be genuine(probably gray market). Is it any good? I also own two older Seiko watches. One is a Bell-Matic no.350603 and a 23 jewel LM stainless-steel automatic with the no. 330355. Will you kindly date them? Tank You.

I just got to replying to your post in my blog today. The Seiko 5 7s26-0060 appears to be an early model if I’m not mistaken. You didn’t say if your watch has a see-thru caseback or a solid stainless steel one. If it’s a transparent glass display back, then your watch would be from October 2009. If it has a stainless steel back it would be from October 1999. Seiko switched from solid caseback to the glass display type sometime between 2003 to 2004.

No idea what “KY” means, but “A4” refers to the standard Seiko issued caseback tool for the case.

I have found an old Seiko – self winding, stainless steel chronograph – in one of the drawers that was given to me as a birthday present, I believe in the 70’s. It has a number 280774. From reading your articles I am assuming it was manufactured in 1972 August? It had stopped working but miraculously appears to be doing so again. I am based in the UK and wondered whether to and if so where to have it serviced. The original strap broke so a replacement was fitted some years ago – non Seiko. I assume I wouldn’t be able to purchase an original. However, any suggestions would be very helpful. Thanks again for the site.

I find this site to be extremely interesting, informative, and professional.

I have worn my Seiko Quartz for over 30 years, replaced the batteries on 3 occasions until this year. It has had 2 batteries replaced within 3 months and has now stopped again. My question(s) is multi-faceted beginning with where and when my Seiko Quartz was made, and what battery is needed to properly keep it running. Also, is there a reputable Seiko watch repair in the Seattle-Tacoma area that you might recommend? In addition, is there any collectable value with this particular watch? The identifiable features written on the face of the watch are:
Seiko
Quartz
SQ
(in tiny print at the face bottom)Japan 7123 81SLR or 815LR
Written on the back bezel:
Seiko
Water Resistant
930583
Japan-G
Stainless Steel 7123-8149G

It still has its SQ Stainless Steel Multi-Linked bracelet. Can you please help me with the information I have provided?

Aloha Quartzimodo Sir, I recently got a ….. ( Seiko 6309-7040 Turtle watch and would need the serial numbers I dentified please. (.. 6309-7040-Seiko 150 Diver )Ser. No. 382722 . Thank you very much for your expertise and time Sir, and a much appreciated website.

In reference to my post on 3/26/13 @ 4:21PM, I forgot to mention that my 7123-8149G has a white face and is a day/date. I tried to follow your opening disclaimer regarding answering posts about dating. However, after reading 56 months worth of inquiries/threads I find no mention of my particular timepiece so I naturally had/have to ask anyway. I really do hope I am not SOL.

My apologies for overlooking your original post, sir. Two weeks ago I was away on vacation to Borneo and the broadband connection was extremely poor and was too slow to load my blog’s administrative dashboard. If you’re unable to find any references to “Seiko 7123” in the previous comments, it’s because no one else has posted a question relating to this caliber. 🙂

In any case, I’ve located your questions from your earlier post:

1. Where and when my Seiko Quartz was made?
Early Seiko quartz watches were always Japan made and 7123-based models were assembled by Seiko’s Daini factory. Your particular watch was a US export model that’s made for the North American market. It was made on March 1979.

2. What battery is needed to properly keep it running?
That would be a Seiko AB-AU or Maxell SR1130SW silver oxide cell. The run-time life between battery changes is 5 years, according to Seiko. If your battery consumption is unusually high, it’s probably a case of dried out lubricating oils on your watch’s geartrain that forces the stepping motor to use more power to overcome friction between the moving parts.

3. Is there a reputable Seiko watch repair in the Seattle-Tacoma area that you might recommend?
I live on the other side of the world (SE Asia) and wouldn’t know, sorry. But you could look for a watch repair shop that is experienced with servicing old Seiko quartz watches in your area, or send your watch to Mahwah, New Jersey where the Seiko USA’s service center (Coserv) is.

4. Is there any collectable value with this particular watch?
It depends. Seiko used the 7123 quartz movement in assorted watches, including the short lived Seiko 5 Quartz. The collectible status of an old quartz Seiko watch depends on its styling. Collectors tend to favor sporty looking ones, such as these ones compared to ordinary gents’ dress types. And as such, the resale price depends on public demand. Have a look at some various Seiko 7123 watches here with different stylings.

Hi ,thanks for all the information.I recently purchased Seiko SNKE 03 automatic and started to admire Seiko watches.Now I am planning for a second watch.Can you please suggest me a nice one with power reserve indicator which I find a useful function and cost less than USD 400.00.Thank you very much

Aloha again Sir, Forgot to mention it……….. I bought from a guy at the local stadium swap meet for ……..( Ten Bucks )and one for parts with it. It has a original Seiko 22mm type oyster bracelet on it, all original, except the dial was changed. The parts one also is all original.
( I guess I was in the Right place, Right time )

Aloha Sir , I have another one that you replied to but need the Date also. Seiko 6309-7040 Ser.No. 382722 mentioned above. Sir these Seiko watchs com up in Hawaii quite often and many dont take care of them so they become items to get hold off real easy. Tourist are constant buyers and they dump many things that come availabe to many. Thank you again very much for your time and expertise Sir.

Since you’re into collecting 6309-704x divers, you might want to consider modifying one of them with a custom dial and hands! I own two and one of them has a non-original Seiko made dial, therefore I modded it using Yobokies’ custom dials. The other one has an original Suwa dial in very good condition, therefore I leave it as it is. 🙂

BTW, your 6309-7040 is an international version and was made on August 1983. This is assuming that the caseback is original to the watch, not a swapped caseback from a different watch. If the caseback says “JAPAN A”, your dial should have the fine print “JAPAN 6309” below the 6 o’clock marker.

It’s not unusual to find lots of vintage Seiko watches outside of Japan; countries like Peru, the Philippines and Hawaii USA would have plenty of them due to the Japanese tourist population post World War 2. 🙂

Aloha Sir , Thank you very much for your reply on my 7040.
I look into modding watchsb ut cant get the looks of many, maybe in time. I like most orinality of alot of things, so when watchs became, I liked to keep them original for a time. Yobokies have and do great work, and quality is experiste. Many people here loose their jewelry in the rushing time they spend here and leave and just replace it later and leave it at that. People here just find them and sell them for the …. $$$$ Buck. Also the military is here and they buy and sell alot so sources are available most commonly. I Have the 6306-7001,in fact two of them got it free but in parts, so I am going to get it back to an original state soon. Problem is the original Dials are not common to find. All I need is one original dial and I would be just fine.
Thank you again and Aloha from Hawaii Sir.

I just bought a 1983 SEIKO 7n43 -812L D2 serial #391361 case # 7n43-8119.
It does not have SEIKO on the case nor the bracelet but the dial has SEIKO with QUARTZ underneath it. It is a very nice looking and working watch but without the SEIKO on the back or the bracelet I’m wondering if it’s a genuine SEIKO or not.
Can you enlighten me?
Thanks Ed

I apologize for taking a long time to get back to you due to some personal issues. 🙁

It took me also some time trying to find more information about your particular model and I finally found this example on the Internet. This is a discontinued, Japan made model that was specifically marketed to the USA. The 7N43-8119’s caseback for some odd reason, doesn’t have the “SEIKO” inscription but its bracelet clasp should have the “SEIKO” logo embossed on it. If you bought it used, the clasp may have been replaced with a generic one at some point in time.

Assuming that your watch looks like the one in the link which posted, yours should be a genuine Seiko watch.

Do you need to insure the watch at all? If you ask me, you could insure it if you want to – but only for its sentimental value rather than its face value on the second hand market. You could even include the watch as part of your all-risks home insurance (if you have one) but home insurance generally give low compensation payouts. Unless you happen to own a rare vintage Rolex or Omega, old Seiko watches are usually not worth insuring – unless you have dozens of really collectible and valuable Seiko watches.

Your 7123-7040 is a quartz model and likely to have been made on December 1978 since the 7123 caliber was introduced in the late 1970s. The lightning symbol means that your watch was assembled by the Daini factory in Japan (the other one being the Suwa plant).

As for the dual-language day display, the Roman day-of-week is an alternative language for owners who aren’t versed in English. It’s easier to for such owners to count the number of days in a week; therefore Monday is represented by “I”, Tuesday (II), Wednesday (III), Thursday (IV), Friday (V), Saturday (VI) while Sunday is signified as a solid red rectangle. Some old Seiko models have Kanji characters, German, French, Italian, Farsi, Arabic etc (depending on the market) and if you aren’t fluent in such languages, the Roman display mode is easier understood.

Hi, i have a Seiko divers, which i bought new in the late 70’s. Ive date aged it from the various websites and its manufacture date is december 78. its model number is 7548 700A. It still works fine and in pretty reasonable condition with just a few minor marks. Do you know what a typical cost would be to have it refurbished, and would it be worth doing as i have no idea what the value of this watcch would be. Thanks

You are correct; the 7548-700A was one of Seiko’s earliest quartz divers’ models from the late 70s. While it is a collectible diver’s model it will not necessarily fetch a huge price on eBay or the second hand market.

The cost of refurbishing your watch will depend on how much work needs to be done to it and the fees charged by professional watch restorers. Contact Jack Alexyon and Bob Thayer for an estimate. Seiko is not in the business of restoring watches to their original glory, therefore unless repair is the issue at hand, don’t bother contacting a Seiko service center. 🙂

Hello Sir, i came across a seiko 5 21 jewel watch at a yard sale and was trying to price it,#981523 above japan E. I also have a seiko watch that i have had for over 35 years and would like to know some history on it as well. I find two sets of numbers on it Japan 4100-5069 on face and 740549 on back.
Thank you.

Your Seiko Quartz 4100-5069 was a late 70’s dress timepiece and is most probably dated April 1977. It’s fully made in Japan by Seiko’s Suwa factory for the US market. Seiko must have made numerous models based on the 4100 movement but there aren’t many photos of Seiko 4100s available. Unfortunately most Seiko dress watches fall into the generic category and there’s not much history behind them, unless it’s a quartz Grand Seiko or the historical Astron, which was Seiko’s first commercially produced quartz watch.

As for your first question, Seiko 5 (the non-chronograph kind) don’t carry much value in the used market. You didn’t furnish the caliber/caseback numbers, therefore I wouldn’t know what model you bought at the yard sale. 🙂

Apologies for the belated reply. Your Seiko 7009-8760 is a sporty looking, Seiko 5 that used the 7009 movement from Seiko Japan’s Daini factory. Judging from its styling, it appears that this is a late 1980s model and I believe your watch was made on August 1993, three years before the replacement 7s26A caliber was introduced. It was most likely assembled by Seiko’s factory in Hong Kong. The 7009 is a fully automatic, 17 jewel movement with no hack/auxiliary hand winding feature. There’s nothing really special about the movement itself.

I’m sorry I can’t give any further information beyond that. Seiko made lots of models based on the 7009 automatic back then and it’s virtually impossible to track each and every one of them.

Hi! Very informative article! I wanted to date my Seiko Watch, but when I click on the Link for Jayhawk’s Production Date Calculated or the Production Date Calculator, all I get is “Web page unavailable” for both links!

Anyway, my Ex-Husband gave me this watch, for Christmas, one year (while we were still married) and I can’t remember what year it was…The Serial number is 9N0413 and I think the Calibration number is 5N09…There are some other numbers before those numbers, separated by a dash…They are Y150…Not sure if those mean anything or not!

Hopefully you can tell me a li’l about my Watch…I’m thinking I might sell it, although I still wear it, sometimes!

Thank you for your help! Enjoyed the information you gave on figuring out the Production Date for Seiko Watches! :o}

Jayhawk, who wrote the script for his Production Date Calculator originally hosted his webpage on his university’s web servers. His webpage often migrated from one server to another and as such, links have to be updated every time he makes changes. His latest version has some improvements over the previous one but he needs volunteers to verify the starting year of many calibers that’s not in his database. Thanks for notifying me, as I’ve located and updated the calculator’s latest web address. 🙂

You have a quartz ladies’ Seiko watch – the Y150-5N09. This is an old caliber dating to most probably the early 1980s, when the Seiko Holdings company was still known as “K. Hattori Seiko Co.” in Japan. I have no idea how long the company continued making the Y150 movement, but I managed to locate some photos of your watch online. From the braided bracelet and faux diamond studded bezel styling, my best guess is that your watch was manufactured on November 1989, if not 1999.

Unfortunately Seiko ladies’ watches don’t carry much of a resale value unless they’re made of 18 or 24 carat solid gold. If it says “ST. STEEL + BASE METAL” on the caseback, then your watch is just gold plated and is therefore not valuable. If you ask me, it’s better to keep it for sentimental reasons unless you absolutely don’t want it to remind you of your former hubby. 😉

Aloha Sir and thank you for your information , and it is very welcome to receive.
Have another one:
I forgot to add one that is a ……. ( 6309-7049 )
Case Back reads = ( ” Japan A” ). Serial. No. 151594.
( This one has an original Hong Kong” , Dial in it and Running great, and all original case also. ( I found this one ) Sir thank you very much for your time and expertise.
Aloha and Mahalo from Honolulu.

I’m amazed that you’ve managed to find all the available 6309 divers in Honolulu – and that’s probably just only on the Oahu island. 🙂

In any case, your latest one would be from May 1981 and it’s a US market model (designated -7049 instead of -7040). I’m a bit surprised that this one is Hong Kong assembled though, because I’ve never heard of a non-Japan made 6309 diver as early as 1981. Guess there’s always the first time to everything.

Thank you again Sir for the information. Sir get this about the 7040 Diver. I found this one in …….
( Sixty Foot of Water, on a sand and coral area. It was almost completely buried with sand when I saw it about ( 20 feet away from me. It was kinda tarnished but not faded or the watch leaking. It was in a little mossey shape outside of it, and when I shook it it started up and ticking just fine. And its still going now, been running for about a month and a half so far.

Actually that’s a good idea to snorkel dive into the shallow waters looking for “buried treasure”. More likely than not diver’s watches that are found on the seabed were fitted with rubber straps. The original owners may have accidentally dropped them while adjusting their watches strapped on their wet suits, the rubber straps simply failed and broke or intentionally cut if their watches somehow got tangled onto something underwater. 🙂

Since the 6309 were considered cheap to replace (unlike a Rolex Submariner), I guess their owners who lost them didn’t want to go through the trouble to find their watches. I remember reading an article about someone finding a vintage Citizen 70’s automatic diver washed up on the shore – although the dial and hands had badly corroded the watch was still ticking! 🙂

Thank you for the information! Quite informative…I have a feeling that he gave me the Watch between 1989 and 1998…The reason I think he gave it to me between those years is ’cause we took a Caribbean Cruise, for Christmas in 1998, and I had the Watch then.

Just out of curiosity, I wanted to see how much this style of Watch might be selling for, so I looked on several different Auction/Sell Now Sites…They’re selling from anywhere between $56.78 to $145.00. It’s amazing how something that is not real gold, but just either Gold Filled or Gold Plated and doesn’t even have real Diamonds could cost as much as it did, when he gave it to me. At the time, I believe it went for around $225.00…(He accidentally left the Price sticker on the Box, so that’s how I know where he bought it and what he paid for it, when he gave it to me. I never let him know that he did, though)

Anyway, thank you, again for the information…It’s good to have this, so that if I ever do decide to sell it, I can put it in the description! :o}

Aloha Sir and Thanks again. Well I just got ( 3 ) more 7040’s and (2 ) 7290 free but 2 are apart the guy gave up on them trying to learn how too’s. So here I go again Sir. Thanks and Mahalo Nui Loa for your time.
LongBike

Wow that was unusual. I just wrote an incredibly long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t appear. Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Anyway, just wanted to say fantastic blog!

I inherited a Seiko watch from my father a few years ago, I remember him wearing it as a child ( I am now 60!) and I have tried to date it from your information but it does’nt seem to adhere to your criteria so I wonder whether you could help.
The numbers on the stainless steel back are: SGP – 66-9990 – 6302188, it has a pearlised face with no numerals and printed on the face diashock 17 jewels.

Good question. The reason that you were unable to date your father’s Seiko watch is because it was made before 1968. Most, if not all Seiko timepieces up to 1967 had seven digit serial numbers but the method of finding the date of production is still the same as those bearing 6-digit serial numbers. From ’68 onwards to this day, Seiko adheres to its 6-digit numbering convention.

In your case, you have a manual winding (non automatic) Seiko watch from March, 1966. Seiko made two variants of this caliber back then – the Cal 66A and 66B, with the latter appearing on the Seiko Sportsman series of watches. Both have an identical jewel count of 17 and are considered “low beat” mechanisms, ticking at 18,000 beats per hour (or 5 ticks per second). The industry norm for mechanical watches today is 21,600 beats per hour (or 6 ticks/second) or higher, for improved accuracy.

Although the Cal 66 watches are interesting timepieces, they are generally not considered high value collectibles. If you suspect the watch hasn’t been serviced for the past 47 years, have it inspected by a watchmaker competent with mechanical watches. At the very least it may need a lubrication service and a re-calibration (or regulation) to restore its accuracy.

Aloha Sir, yes another score 7040. This one is in very good shape yet. ( Say…95% ). ( Serial No.382722 ) . Had a good deal so I took it ….. He said $ 25.00,I said … $50.00. Original box, Papers, Original Starp, Super Oyster Bracelet-never used, (Package Deal Sir). Elderly Gentleman said cant wind it up, crown stuck, I explained, Sir, it wont wind up,Crown is stuck, I said it unscrew’s Sir,He said have two others smaller, this one is to big and clumbsy too. I decided, I will continue to keep collecting them now that they come around.
Aloha and Mahalo again Sir.

Like Don, I inherited a 66 caliber Seiko watch. Thanks to you, I now know that it was produced in October 1967. But here’s the thing, I know that all the watches that came after it have six digit serial numbers and sometime before it they had seven digit serial numbers. The serial number for this watch is 705433. From my research I know the caliber is a 6660 because it is a non-auto, no date, 21 jewel watch. The interesting thing about this watch is that it is a 14k solid gold case, bezel, mesh bracelet and clasp Men’s watch. The markings on the back of the case are: Seiko 14k 66 1001 705433. However, the Seiko 14k and 66 1 look slightly different than the rest. In other words, the serial number and 001 look original and the rest appear to be added later because they are not perfectly aligned.

My father purchased this watch while he was in Tokyo in the late 1960’s. He told me it was a one-of-a-kind Seiko. Other knowledgable Seiko collectors have suggested it is probably a custom made Seiko, and this was before I mentioned that I was told that it is one-of-a-kind.

My question is this. Is it possible that Seiko made a commemorative watch to signify a change? Is this truly a one-of-a-kind Seiko? If it is, why? What’s the reason?

I’m afraid I don’t know much about the 66-1001, let alone whether yours was truly a commemorative model. From the pictures of your watch which I found here, there isn’t much detail to begin with. The bracelet appears original to this watch, from the 18ct solid gold markings on the inside of the buckle. As far as I know, commemorative Seiko watches should have identifying markings either on the dial and/or caseback to signify the event.

For example, the legendary and extremely rare, 5718-8000 chronograph “Tokyo Olympics” had the Olympic torch logo etched on the caseback and all of them had 7-digit serial numbers beginning with “4” to denote the year 1964, when the games were held. Your dad’s watch could have been a rare custom made Seiko which very few people know about. The museum curators at the Seiko Horology Institute in Tokyo might be able to shed some light on your watch.

Out of curiosity, why is your watch up for sale on eBay when you’re unsure whether you want to wear or store it? Unless you need the money for something urgent, in my opinion a fine example of a Seiko like this should be kept within the family to be passed on to your future generations. 🙂

I’m afraid I missed an opportunity to find out more about this watch while my father was alive. I think my response was something like “Cool” when he told me it was one-of-a-kind. But now that it’s mine, I want to know more about it. Since I am quite ignorant about Seiko and its history, I turned to those whom I felt could get me up to speed the quickest. I feel that time is of the essence not only for me but also to find out more about this watch for future generations before all the dinosaurs that could have helped become extinct.

A knowledgeable collector suggested I put it up for sale on eBay at a ridiculous price inorder to draw out serious collectors who may know more about it. So, that’s what I did. Instead of putting a price on it, I put in up for auction with a ridiculous reserve. No one came close 🙂

Sometimes it is better to work backwards to try to find out things, i.e. what it is not. What you mentioned leads me to conclude that it is not a commemorative watch. It makes sense that it would most likely have additional info on it if it were. I didn’t know about the Seiko Horology Institute in Tokyo, but I will contact them to see if they know something more.

I’m becoming more convinced that it is a custom made Seiko. Made for someone or some reason and my father happened to be in the right place at the right time.

Putting your dad’s watch on eBay with a high reserve price is one way to see whether the fish will bite. 😉 If there’s anyone on the watch forums who may be able to shed some clues on your dad’s gold Seiko timepiece would be Kohei Saito, a vintage Seiko collector/fanatic on the TimeZone forum. His personal collection alone is in the hundreds and he’s known for collecting several pieces of the same model. 😉

I’m not sure if he’s still active on the TimeZone forum but if he isn’t there may be other people just as knowledgeable as he is (fingers crossed). You might want to register as a new forum member (read their forum rules carefully) and post your question there, complete with photos (but not images linked to your eBay auction) to aid the veteran members there.

Do note that even moneyed Seiko collectors will scope their hunt to vintage Seiko watches that they’re already familiar with, e.g. King Seiko, Grand Seiko, Laurel, Presmatic and of course, the extremely rare chronographs and diver’s watches from yesteryear. The old 66-1001 may mean a lot to your dad, but then again it doesn’t necessarily imply that vintage Seiko collectors will share his enthusiasm. 🙂

Hello Quartzimodo, I have two Seiko matches, neither of which are running right now. My question is are they worth spending money on? No.1 is a rectangular face (19×22 mm), 9020 5399 RD in box , S/N 4D6006.
No2 is a round face in gold, 5Y23 – 8119 RD in box, S/N 250268.
Thank you for considering this request. Jim.

Are your watches worth repairing and restoring? Well, it depends whether the necessary components that need replacing can be obtained in the first place. Quartz watches, especially from decades ago are more difficult to repair compared to vintage mechanical Seiko watches. Any watch repairman with good experience with mechanical movements can usually perform repairs and adjustments, unless the movement design has too many complications, e.g. automatic chronographs.

Quartz watches spell a different story. In many cases, the Seiko service center will replace the entire quartz movement rather than attempting to fix individual components like stepping motors or even the electronic circuitry. It’s like say, the main circuit board in your laptop or tablet. If one vital component goes bad and renders the laptop useless, nobody undertakes repairs on the motherboard. It’s simply replaced with a new one.

That said, your first qualifier is whether Seiko Japan still carries a replacement movement or whether you can find a working, donor watch with the same movement (Caliber 9020 and 5Y23) on eBay. If you’re able to source a replacement movement, your next criterion would be the labor fees to fix your watches. This depends on your budget and whether they are of sentimental value to you. Good luck with the repairs! 🙂

Having trouble identifying a variant of the Seiko 7s26-0020
It is JDM but the hands have black outline and I have not been able to find JDM with black outline.
similar variants are SKX399K
SKX401K (Pepsi variant of the SKX399K) neither of them are JDM
Picture of watch in question.imageshack.us/photo/my-images/90/b1ju.jpg/

Actually there’s no such thing as a JDM 7s26-0020 diver’s watch. In fact, the 7s26-0020 divers are not meant to be officially sold in Japan but for export only. The SKX399K and 401K on the other hand, are special models that were made specially for the Philippine market. JDM Seiko watches are always marked “JAPAN” on the dial and never “MADE IN JAPAN”.

I was wondering if you could tell me anything about two Seiko Watches I got, for doing someone a favour, on eBay.

The first one is Silver, in colour, with a Mesh type Band and a Ruby coloured face…It says: Seiko…190179…Base Metal Top…Stainless Steel Back…11-34 09, on the back. This is a wind-up Watch…It doesn’t work and I wanted to know about it and if it’s worth spending Money, to get it fixed?

The second one is a Seiko Quartz…Gold, in colour…Says: Seiko…Base Metal Top…St. Steel Back…930567…1400-5219 R…Japan, on the back of it…This one works.

The first watch – the 11-3409 ladies’ model was made on Sept 1971. This particular model is most likely an export version for the US market. The Caliber 11A ladies watches, assembled by Seiko’s Daini production plant was quite popular in its time and many Cal 11A models had very attractive, feminine designs. Some had artificial diamonds on the bezel as ornaments with most fitted with proprietary decorative bracelets that were unique to the design. Unlike Seiko gents’ models, should the bracelets break it’s virtually impossible to fit substitute watch bands.

Is the watch worth fixing? That depends on your motives. If you intend to wear it I’d say it’s worth the cost of overhauling/repair if the watchmaker’s fees are not too prohibitive. If you intend to sell the watch, you’ll have to add the cost of the repairs to your profit margin and hope someone will bite. Remember that unlike men, women tend to favor brand new watches than wearing someone else’s relic from the past. 😉

As for the other quartz watch, the Seiko 1400-5219 is also a US domestic market model. I don’t know how it looks like, but you can find the text “JAPAN” on the dial (near the 6 o’clock marker) then it’s likely to be from March 1979.

Well, my quest continues! I’m starting to think that if I hadn’t broken my silence, no one would ever know about this watch. I didn’t know I maybe the only one left. WOW, that is rare. Everyone could be gone that knew about it and records could be lost, BUT the proof is in the pudding and fortunately, I’ve got the pudding.

I tried to contact the Seiko Museum as you suggested but couldn’t find their email addy. So, I addressed an email to them but sent it to their parent (Seiko Watch). I’m not sure if the Museum ever received it but I did get a reply from Seiko stating they were sorry they couldn’t identify it but the caliber was produced in the late 1960’s. That was it. Not much help there. If you happen to have a direct email addy for the Museum, I would be grateful and will try again.

From my continuing Seiko education, I’ve learned my watch was produced by Suwa Seikosha. Back in the day, Suwa was very innovative. They were the first to produce the Grand Seiko, Quartz Astron, the Spring-Drive and basically made Seiko Men’s watches while the Daini division made Women’s watches. I have also learned that Suwa and Seiko Watch are separate companies today. AND Suwa has their own private museum. My next step is to try to contact Suwa and to look into the Time Zone forum.

Through it all, I’m getting a great Seiko education and I’ve spotted a few I might just like to own:)

The Seiko Institute of Horology (a.k.a. the Seiko Museum) unfortunately has no email contact address although they have a fax number. The museum requires visitors to book their visit in advance and doesn’t allow the public to enter the premises as and when they like. However, some lucky folks who made the pilgrimage to the Seiko Museum have been kind enough to share their experience through watch forum threads such as this one. 🙂

As you probably are aware as a centuries old, traditional homogenous society, few Japanese can speak and write excellent English. Even if you’re able to communicate with the museum curators, they might have trouble understanding your questions – let alone drafting a reply in English that makes sense to you. 🙂

Also bear in mind that the museum curators are not necessarily walking Seiko historians themselves; they may just “work there”. At most they may be able to refer you to some resident Seiko expert living in Japan who might know more about your dad’s watch than the Seiko company does. For example, if your Seiko watch was one of the nondescript gold 66-1001s that were sold to a third party and later customized (e.g. monogrammed) as gifts to corporate individuals, Seiko may not have a clue about it. As far as they’re concerned, it’s a Caliber 66 Seiko timepiece.

Unfortunately Seiko didn’t safeguard their archives and records properly. Years ago I remember reading an article recounting a fire that broke out in their headquarters (not the famous 1932 Tokyo Earthquake) sometime in the 1970s or 1980s which destroyed almost all of their prized documents. What’s unknown is whether the destroyed records included catalogs and documents of the countless models that they’ve produced in the past. Seiko made many more models than Rolex ever did. The more notable and milestone watches are proudly displayed at the Seiko Museum. What about the other countless Seiko watches that were considered “generic” models? It’s impossible for Seiko to keep a copy of each and every model that they’ve ever sold and they all won’t physically fit into their museum building for sure.

The reason that you can easily buy a comprehensive book on Rolex vintage watches is because the Swiss manufacturer didn’t make watches as diverse as Seiko did, plus the fact that old Rolex watches are much more valuable and sought after vs a comparable Seiko counterpart. Now you know why Seiko’s website only advertises only some of their contemporary models and don’t have an archives section for all of their long discontinued models. 🙂

It’s good to know that you’ve done some research on the history of the K. Hattori company that started out manufacturing Seikosha watches and clocks. While it’s true that women’s (and boys) Seiko watches were made only by the Daini factory, Daini also made movements for men’s watches, e.g. the rare 701x chronographs, the 7002 and 7009 to name a few. Most collectors agree that overall, Suwa made better designed movements and watches than Daini did.

Thank you for the information! I really like the 11-3409 and since I got it, as Gift, along with the other Watch (the 1400-5219) for doing a favour, for someone on eBay, I think I’ll try to get it fixed, so I can wear it! :o}

I’m confused about something, though…The other Watch (the 1400-5219) says JAPAN 1400-0290R on the Face, down by the 6:00 marker…Why are the 2 numbers different? I used my Jewellers Loupe to read it, since it was so small, to be able to read, with the naked eye! So, why the different numbers? Thank you for the information!

Well good for you! There are not many women that I’ve heard who appreciate pre-owned vintage watches, unless it’s a part of their family heirloom or estate 🙂

The good thing about mechanical watches is that they’re not proprietary designs to the original manufacturer. AFAIK, Seiko’s service centers don’t undertake overhaul or repair jobs of their mechanical watches as it’s a time consuming task and requires a skill set that’s beyond merely replacing movements. You can think of it like stripping down the engine block of a classic car and painstakingly restoring every component. In terms of labor, it’s cheaper and much easier to drop in a used motor of the same model that still works.

Quartz watches are a different story as the quartz movement (or module) has little or no serviceable parts. More often than not a non-working quartz watch will need its entire movement replaced – and if the model has been discontinued for over a decade, you’ll have to find a donor watch with the same but working module.

The reason why the numbers on the dial usually differ from the caseback is simple. “1400-0290R” refers to the exact dial that your watch has. Seiko made several variations of the 1400-5219 and the only way to distinguish between members of the same watch family is via the dial code. Generally Seiko collectors and Seiko themselves refer a watch model by the caseback code (the dial code isn’t as important). Only when the service center needs to order a replacement dial from Japan that they will use “1400-0290R” instead as that number is unique to the watch dial’s styling.

If you don’t hear from me for awhile it will be because I haven’t made any new progress. BUT rest assured, I will be following-up on every lead and leaving no stone unturned in my pursuit of the facts.

When I discover something new, I will be glad to share it here with you.

Thank you for all the great information! I, actually, like Vintage/Antique things…I have several pieces of Jewellery that are old…One is a Necklace that’s at least a hundred years old! The 1400-5219 was made the same month (March) and year (1979) my Daughter was born…I think that’s cool…What would really be awesome is if it had been made the same day, (the 26th) too!

I’m thinking about putting a Bid in, on eBay, for a Seiko Watch…The number is 11-7669…There are 3 days left, before bidding is over. So far, No one has placed a Bid…Starting Bid is $1.99…I like to wait, before placing a Bid, to see if anyone else places one. I know this is a fairly older Seiko, but, according to the description, it still works! Do you think it’s worth bidding on?

I stumbled upon this interesting site when by chance when looking for information about my old watch from the late 80’s or early 90’s that I just gave to my son. I was looking for some sort of manual or other instructions.

It is a diver’s watch with a rotating bezel and luminescent hands.
It has three smaller white dials in in the 3, 6, and 9 position, showing date, 24hr and weekday.

On the front is
SEIKO
Quartz
Water resistant
TITANIUM (not on the watch iteslf, more on the place where the wristband locks to the watch case)

On the back it has
SEIKO
Stainless steel
Water resistant
7009-3170[A2]
203630

When googleing for 7009-3170, none of the search hits match how my watch looks. I would really appreciate if there is anything you can tell me about this watch so I can pass this info on to my son.
Let me know if you need me to send you pics.

You have a good question, actually. Firstly, I’d like to apologize for the late response as I’ve been traveling and did not bring my laptop with me. 🙁

What you have with you is a Seiko watch that has incorrect parts put together. Without a link to photos of your actual watch, I cannot tell what it is – but I can tell you what it’s not. It’s definitely not a 7009-3170, as not only the 7009 is a mechanical caliber, it’s a Seiko 5 Automatic dress model. At some point in time, your Seiko’s caseback was replaced with a substitute and it’s from a 7009-3170. This is why none of the images that you searched for matched your Seiko watch. 🙂

A Seiko diver’s watch should have the text “Water Resist” on the dial plus the depth rating (150m for vintage Seiko divers, 200m and above for more recent divers). If the dial only says “Water Resist” alone, it’s also not a true diver’s watch, but a timepiece with a diver’s watch styling. Furthermore, Seiko never made a true diver’s watch in the 80s or early 90s with the dial design which you described. I strongly suspect that you have what we collectors call a “Frankenseiko”, which is basically a Seiko that’s cobbled with parts that are not original to the actual model.

You can upload photos of your watch to the free TinyPic image uploading service and reply with the link.

I have a family heirloom that my mother gave me. It is 14k gold with 6 diamonds. The markings say it is Base Metal with a St. Steel back and the numbers are 8420-7059 [RO] 430266. On the front it says Japan 8420 in small letters on one side, the other side says 1739 R. Mom said it had been appraised several years ago for several thousand. I haven’t seen any watch similar in looks nor price. Can you shed any light?

I apologize for the late response as I’ve been traveling and did not bring my laptop with me. 🙁

Seiko didn’t make any ladies’ watches way back in the 1950s – not any that I know of. In that decade, the K. Hattori company called its brand of watches “Seikosha”, not Seiko.
Caliber 11 watches for women were first introduced in the early 1970s and Seiko stopped making them towards the end of the decade. In this case, your Seiko 11-7669 was manufactured on August 1973. Your particular model was also sold only in the United States. 🙂

I have a Seiko Analog Sports 150 Quartz Men’s Diver in original case & box w/instructions, 1yr & 2yr warranties and purchase receipt (1989). Very-Excellent shape and runs. Day/date need fix (unsure/adjusts with a skip-grinding).
5H23 7009 w/AO in box. Serial# 7D0252.
Left of “6 O’clock” position reads-Japan 5h23.
Right of “6 O’clock” reads 7D5l T.
It was my Dad’s. Can you tell me anything about this watch? Worth fixing or should I refrain wearing it as a beater?

Thank you for the information…I must say I’m a l’il disappointed to learn that the Watch was not made in 1955, but rather in August 1973, instead! The main reason I even Bid on the Watch, in the 1st Place, was because the description said, “1955 Seiko Ladies Cocktail Watch Model #’s 11-7669”! If I had known before I placed my Bid, I would never have Bid on it! 🙁 Next time, I won’t be so gullible! Thank you again!

I had no idea you were bidding on a Caliber 11A ladies’ watch and am sorry that’s it’s almost two decades later than what you were led to believe. My mum also owns an old Seiko 11A ladies’ watch and it’s from 1972. She clearly remembers my father giving it to her later in that year. 🙂

In your case, just wear and enjoy the watch as it is, regardless of its vintage. The year of manufacture doesn’t matter, if you had chosen this watch from an eBay listing it must be an attractive looking watch.

I made contact with the watch division of the former Suwa Seikosha. After giving them the photos they requested,
they were kind enough to spend their time and effort reviewing their micro-films for the late 1960’s and early 1970’s time period.

But they could not locate this particular watch and were unable to reach any definite conclusion. Unfortunately, they could no longer spend any more time on their research. However, it is their belief that it is a custom made Seiko.

I was hoping they could shed a little more light on the subject, but at least the watch has been well vetted by the manufacturer.

And now that they know of its existence?????

I will continue in my pursuit.

I’m thinking about naming this particular model. Let’s see, there is the Grand Seiko, the King Seiko, the Credor Seiko, how about the Emperor Seiko? Do you think there is any precedence for this?

Hey, that’s great news. I didn’t think that Seiko Japan would oblige digging up their archives and look up your dad’s watch but they were probably as mystified as you are. 🙂

In any case, watches (not only from Seiko) have been known to undergo custom jobs performed by third party watchmakers to commemorate special events. Your dad’s watch probably started out as one of their regular 66-1001s straight from the factory but some pieces had been purchased by a corporate or government client and sent to a watchmaker for additional customizations. For example, Seiko Thailand has some autonomy to produce certain Seiko models that are only exclusive to the Thai market and not marketed elsewhere.

One prominent Thailand based online watch forum called the “Siam Naliga” once purchased 200 pieces of an extremely rare and limitedly made, 7s55 Seiko 5 Superior for its members and customized the watch to have “Siam Naliga” on the lower part of the dial. I only learned about this watch only because someone took the trouble to post photos of it online.

Anyway, you can also add “Lord Marvel”, “Laurel”, “Marvel” and “Champion” to your list as they were sub-ranges of the vintage Seiko watch family. 🙂 However, the “Credor” brand is usually referred to as Credor, rather than Seiko Credor as it is regarded as a separate brand altogether. You can think of Credor like the Infiniti range of luxury cars that Nissan makes (they’re not called “Nissan Infiniti”). 🙂

I don’t think the caliber table as collated by Jayhawk in that link was ever vetted for accuracy. It doesn’t even have annotations or additional information in it. It is however, correct that the list is compiled with the caliber number first and followed by the starting year of manufacture. There are two variations of the Caliber 11A, one with 17 jewels and the other with twenty one, which you can see here. You can see the “SEIKO” logo on the movement plate in the first photo, while the second one with 17 jewels shows “SEIKO Time Corp” and “Singapore”. In the old days up to the late sixties, Seiko had calibers with two digit numbers but later changed to a standardized, 4-character caliber code.

However based on these auction photos, the more modern caseback design and fonts used for the 11-7669 doesn’t look like any Seiko watch that was made in the 1950s – like this antique Seiko Marvel for instance. Observe how classic watches from that era tended to have rounded and smooth polished casebacks.

In case you’re wondering, that faded yellowish opaque oblong sticker on the eBay 11-7669 example I listed above is the factory’s stamp of quality control and had something like “JAPAN PASSED” or “JAPAN QC” printed on it. Seiko used to affix these clear stickers on the casebacks of their watches until the late 1980s to signify that they’ve been checked at the factory. I know this because I still have my oldest Seiko H657 analog-digital watch (not pre-owned) that was from 1987 and had the same sticker on its caseback until it became dirty and finally removed it. 🙂

However, like Seiko Watch former Suwa Seikosha could not find model number 66-1001 in their records (or lack thereof) either. So to say the watch probably started out as a “regular” model 66-1001 would be contrary to the facts because there is no such thing! Seiko has no record or knowledge of a “regular” model 66-1001 and no one knew of this one’s existence. The only known example in the world of a model 66-1001 is the one I own and as far as anyone knows, it IS the regular model until proven otherwise.

Now whether it is a custom made Seiko is only conjecture because of its uniqueness. All of the stampings and markings are Seiko and no other third party. The similarity between it and say model 6660-7010 are striking. I would say they could be cousins. However, IF Seiko could not build this watch “in-house” at the time, they may have commissioned a third party to help.

I found a watch site (in Spanish) that mentions another example of the 66-1001. However, this example is in 14K white gold rather than yellow gold. It bears a serial number of 705652 and was made in the same month and year as your dad’s watch. The seller is from Malaga, Spain and quoted 1,200 Euros for it.
The discovery of another model like yours means that not only this watch was indeed made by Seiko, but it’s also no longer a “one-of-kind” as previously assumed. After seeing the white gold example, I’m inclined to believe the 66-1001 was actually a limited release, factory made watch. 🙂

The fact that Seiko failed to find records pertaining to the 66-1001 was probably the result of their chaotic archival system in the 70s or 80s. Many decades ago, their old office building also suffered a fire that resulted in the irreplaceable loss of some valuable archives and records. That might explain why they failed to locate the “66-1001” from their microfiche library.

I also noted that you posted your question as far back as January 2009 on the old SCWF site, when I was still a moderator there. As no one had replied to your post after you included pictures of it, I guess nobody knows about the history of your dad’s watch.

Hi quartzimodo,
I’ve been looking around to find a nice seiko watch for a gift and I found that different websites have different names for the same watch? There is the Seiko SNAE57, SNAE57P, SNAE57P-9, and a SNAE57-1. Examples below, respectively.

All of the watches sold by the different sellers are actually the exact, same model. The Seiko Coutura lineup is originally exclusive to the US market but it seems that they are now made available to selected countries across the world. For the North American market, this watch is known as just “SNAE57”, without the “P” suffix. For official export to other countries, this same watch has the “P” suffix to denote that it’s assembled in Singapore.

I’m not sure what “9” stands for but Seiko uses a number to denote the bracelet type. The correct model designation, as printed on this watch’s hang tag would be “SNAE57P9”, unless it’s sold in the U.S. where it will read “SNAE57”. Some websites follow the hang tag’s description exactly while others usually leave out the bracelet type.

I apologize for not testing the links. Something was wrong with the WordPress’ built-in editor when it came to copying and pasting the links, which has never happened before. They’re now fixed and you can now use the links in my corrected comment reply.

That’s really great news! This is the confirmation I’ve been looking for and I think this nails it!

I think you are exactly right why Seiko failed to locate this model in their records. Also, I want to correct a previous statement about Suwa’s response to me. I stated “it is their belief that it is a custom made Seiko”. The actual response from the one who did the research was “I think it may have been a custom made Seiko”.

As I mentioned in my query back in 2009, my watch was one of two made. Why did I say this? My father told me he was offered two watches at the time. He chose the one I currently have. I think you have located the second and perhaps last. Let’s see if any other 66-1001’s show-up. If not, I can still say mine is one-of-a-kind and whoever owns the white one can say the same because they are both unique and different.

I apologize for not being able to reply to you sooner. You have a very old hand-winding, Seiko Crown that dates to January 1965. All the details that you’ve given me checks out as a pre-1968, Seiko timepiece. I’m not sure what “TAD” stands for as this is the first time I’ve come across the characters. “EGP” probably stands for Electro Gold Plating in those days as later on Seiko used “SGP” instead, which stood for “Seiko Gold Plated”.

This is a very handsome looking vintage timepiece and yours should look like this example on eBay. 🙂

Just love your site and am amazed at your patience in helping so many folk with their Seiko watches. I have a stainless steel Seiko quartz I purchased in South Africa in around 1976. The dial has 4004 on it and the serial number is 615244. It also has 0903-8079 engraved on the back case. While the watch is round, the bezel is multi-sided (10 sides) and appears to be bevelled at the edge. I wore the watch for a few years but for some reason put it away in its box and got something else (probably something considered more glamorous at the time!). I’ve just come across the watch again and see that I was sensible enough to remove the battery before storing it in it’s case. However, as a result, I have no idea what battery it takes. Would you be able to advise? Does a watch of this age have any value? Many thanks, Paul

Hi I’m having a hard time finding information about my Seiko Sportsmatic 5 waterproof diashock 21 jewels watch. There is a black 78 on the back of the watch face, The inner movement has SEIKO onto it, with 6619A. The casing serial number is 6705529, and also has the numbers 6619-8050. If someone could help me figuring out the time-period of this watch, value, and any other useful information, that would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

I have a SEIKO watch I was hoping to identify and find the value of, plus additional information on! The face is silver with some lines on it, what looks to be some type of metal metal, with “Seiko Sportsmatic 5 waterproof diashock 21 jewels” on the middle left side. The case is metal with a dolphin on the back in the middle, along with 6705529 underneath it. To the side, there is 6619-8050. The movement inside has 6619A in orange. I’ve searched all over to find information on this watch, but haven’t found anything.

There are actually a few photos of the Sportsmatic 6619-8050 which you can find on the Internet. There’s a discussion thread from the old SCWF site which you can find here. Yours was made on July 1966. As for the estimated value of your timepiece, I’ve seen 6619 examples that ranged from US$80 to US$250 on eBay depending on the watch’s styling and condition.

Hi
Received a Seiko watch in the early 1980’s
. It has a 14 carat gold case,on back of the case are the following numbers:
7800-5299
Serial number 950121
Would appreciate any information available on this model. Most likely manufactured in 1979 as per your site.
Thank you

I’m afraid I don’t know much about the 7800 series Seiko watches other than that it’s a simple hour/minute quartz designed for slim cased, gents’ dress watches. However, you’re not too far off the mark in estimating that the watch was made on May 1979. This watch was made by Seiko’s Suwa watch factory (the other one being the Daini plant).

From the caseback designation characters (5299), it’s very possible that your Seiko timepiece was a U.S. export model that wasn’t officially sold elsewhere in the world. Broadly speaking, generic Seiko dress quartz watches aren’t that collectible and their resale value would be high only if the watch case is made from 14ct solid gold. In other words, your watch is only worth what goldsmiths and pawn stores are willing to pay for its gold content rather than from the watch collector’s viewpoint. Sorry, but that’s how it is with Seiko watches. 🙁

Thanks for your question! I think you’re my first reader who has gone through great lengths to provide such a verbose description of your watch, although it’s not really necessary to do so. 🙂 What is more important is the caliber/caseback code and the six digit serial numbers found at the back of your watch.

The 7T36 caliber is an offshoot of the discontinued Seiko 7T3x family and is a unique caliber as it drives a moonphase display mechanism. From the description which you provided, your watch model may have been the SEJ018J model, which was fully made in Japan. This is a rare piece as far as Seiko quartz gents’ models are concerned, but the rarity in a Seiko watch doesn’t always mean that it will fetch a high price on the used market. Not unless the model carries a unique significance with it, such belonging to the collectible “Age of Discovery” limited release lineup, like this one for instance.

BTW, your Seiko watch was made on December 1990. The date 18th of October as found on your user’s guide may have meant 18/10/1991, or later. It is not unusual for some store sold Seiko watches to be purchased a few years after they were originally made. 🙂

I have a Seiko watch that I bought in 1996 and I cannot find anything about it. What I’m looking for is what battery does it take, around what should I ask for it should I want to sell it, and I read somewhere that it is “rare”, is it? The back reads, from top to bottom:
“SEIKO”
“Base Metal”
“ST.STEEL BACK”
“V701-1K20” [RO] <— "RO" in a very small box
"MM"
"620481"

It has a black face with gold hour/second marks and hands and the band and the case is black metal(?) finished.

Thank you for the question. The V701 is a simple quartz caliber that Seiko used for gents’ and ladies’ dress watches. By the definition “simple”, the movement only shows the time and lacks a date display. Seiko watches that use the V701 require a Seiko, Maxell, Sony or Panasonic SR621SW 1.55 volt, silver oxide cell or the Energizer #364 button cell.

When it comes to rarity in Seiko watches, rare doesn’t automatically mean valuable or collectible. You could say your V701-1K20 is rare as it’s been long discontinued model and seldom seen worn by other people but that’s about it. Generally vintage Seiko quartz dress watches don’t fetch a high value on eBay, with an average price of US$100 unless the watch is constructed of 14k solid gold or a Disney edition like this one with the Mickey Mouse face. In the case of the Mickey Mouse watch, people who will readily buy them are very likely to be Disney memorabilia collectors rather than Seiko watch collectors. There are very, very few Seiko enthusiasts who discuss generic quartz dress watches in forums or blogs – which is why you can’t find much information on your particular model on the Internet. 🙂

BTW, your Seiko model is likely the SFW777P and was assembled on February 1996, the same year when you purchased it.

Hi,
I got this watch from my father, its about 10 years old, and I would like to know something about this watch and if it is valuable. It is Seiko 7T34 collection from Roland Garros. These are numbers from the botom:
7T34-8A00 (R1)
011938
Thank You! 🙂

Your Seiko 7T34 is a rare quartz chronograph caliber and the fact that yours was one from the “Roland Garros” (the French Open tennis tournament) Seiko lineup makes it a more collectible watch – but not necessarily valuable. A die hard, Roland Garros fan collecting memorabilia items associated with the historical tennis event is likely to offer you more for the watch than the average vintage Seiko collector would. Therefore how valuable your watch will depend on the buyer.
Here’s an example of a pre-owned, Roland Garros endorsed watch – but it’s a Swiss-made, Rado Diastar watch, not a Seiko. Which is why the seller on eBay is asking USD675 for it instead of say, USD275. 🙂

BTW, your dad’s watch was originally manufactured on January 1990 based on its overall styling. The 7T34 appeared about the same time as the long running and more common, 7T32 caliber. Seiko actually released other models of different calibers for the Roland Garros commemorative edition; not just the 7T34.

I’ve owned a Seiko Quartz 4004 model 4623-8059, serial 600346 since the 1970’s. It has a black face. Has day and date with both English and Spanish language options. When I asked a local Seiko dealer to have a look and possibly replace the power cell, he had it for a few days and returned it saying he couldn’t do anything for me. It wasn’t until I looked under the battery cover that I realized he didn’t replace the original cell – so I’m not sure what model battery to look for. Your help is appreciated. Len.

You have one of Seiko’s earliest quartz controlled models from the 70s. Actually the “4004” series was available in several calibers; and not just 4623. I’ve seen examples that use the 4633 (day/date version) as well as the 0903 movement. “4004” is just a style name that Seiko chose for these vintage quartz tickers, probably for marketing reasons. This watch was made on October 1976 and requires the early Union Carbide Co. (UCC 301 silver oxide battery).
According to Battery Bob’s retail website, Maxell does manufacture an SR43SW silver oxide cell that’s compatible with the U.C.C. #301 cell and the calibers 4623/4633 are listed at the bottom of the webpage. If in doubt, contact Battery Bob himself.

Thanks for the wealth of information here, and sorry to hit you with another 7009 question! I’m trying to date a couple of 7009s to 1985 or 1995 – case numbers are 3170 and 3119. Back and front images are here: tinypic.com/r/14v7amx/8

I has assumed both were 1985 due to wear and styling but the above info seems to suggest the ‘movt singapore’ on the gold datejust homage puts it at 1995? The dials are very similar, so perhaps they both are?

Just trying to work out if I have found one or two birth month watches or I need to keep looking!

Thanks for the wealth of information here, and sorry to hit you with another 7009 question! I’m trying to date a couple of 7009s to 1985 or 1995 – case numbers are 3170 and 3119. Back and front images are here: tinypic.com/r/14v7amx/8

I has assumed both were 1985 due to wear and styling but the above info seems to suggest the ‘movt singapore’ on the gold datejust homage puts it at 1995? The dials are very similar, so perhaps they both are?

Just trying to work out if I have found one or two birth month watches or I need to keep looking!

[apologies if double posted, my initial comment has not showed up after 24 hours]

Thanks for the comments. I was unable to get back to you until today, therefore I apologize for the late response. The 7009 caliber is one of Seiko’s movements that ran for about two decades and is found in many low cost Seiko automatics. For the basic Seiko 5 family, the 7009 was Seiko’s choice caliber from the mid 70s until 1996, when it was finally replaced with the 7s26A movement. Cosmetic wear and tear in a watch is not a good yardstick to gauge its age because it depends on how well kept or preserved the timepiece is.

Unfortunately I’m not able to ascertain the exact decade of either model with surety. Seiko made countless variations of the Seiko 5 watch and the caseback styling of a 7009 from 1985 to 1995 is pretty much the same except for minor details like manner the “Seiko” text is engraved. However I’m inclined to believe the silver faced watch – the 7009-3170 (SCWN67K) and the gold plated 7009-3119 (SCWW46) were both made in 1995. The 7009-3119 is definitely made for the US export market, as evidenced by the “Movement Singapore” engraved on the caseback, in accordance to the U.S.’ FTC country of manufacture labeling regulations.
You may be interested to know that the Rolex Datejust homage, 7009-3119 became very popular that Seiko continued making Seiko 5s of this styling even after they switched to the 7s26A caliber.

hello,
I am a seiko wristwach lover from Romania, and because of that I buyed a Seiko automatic watch more then 17 years ago, and it is still in a very, very good working condition.
it have the serial nr:
110121
Can you tell me in which year was it made?
thank you in advance,
Florin

I need to know the caliber and caseback numbers (it’s printed on the rear of your watch) in order to know what Seiko model that you have. Its format is XXXX-YYYY where XXXX is the caliber and YYYY the caseback type. Just posting the serial number alone won’t do because there are other Seiko watches with the same “110121” serial number too. I hope you have read the Part One of my article as I have shown in great detail how to read your Seiko watch’s caliber and caseback numbers. 🙂

Thanks for the reply. Seiko actually made many variations of Seiko 5 models with the 7009-3130 and yours is just one of them. What I do know that the model reference number starts with the letter “SCW”, e.g. SCWL47K but I wouldn’t know the exact model that you have. Based on my estimate, your Seiko 5 was made on January 1991. It was manufactured in Hong Kong with the internal parts sourced from Japan.

Hi Quartzimodo. I’ve just acquired a nice s/h Seiko 5 automatic with a blue dial and a display caseback. The calibre on the glass says “7S26-02F0 A4 KY”, and the serial number engraved on the caseback rim is “237177”.

Would I be right in calculating that this watch was made in March 2002 and that the serial number is 7177?

Great question. Your Seiko 5 watch is most likely from March 2012 rather than the year 2002. Seiko did not start introducing see-thru display backs until 2004 and the styling of this watch (notably the separated day and date windows) is not from the early Millennium. Furthermore, the 7s26 movement in those days were the first generation, 7s26A. If you examine its oscillating weight, you should see “7S26C” engraved on it – which is the third iteration of the 7s26 caliber.
You are correct in saying that the serial number for your watch is 7177, but from the assembly line it’s actually the 7178th piece produced for the 7s26-02F0 model in March 2012. The first one for that month would bear the serial number 230000.

Hi guys. I need help. I don’t know how I can determine the serial number of the watch. On the back of the watch It writes:
SAPPHIRE CRYSTAL
SEIKO
470058 -8 is bold
WATER RESISTANT 10 BAR ST.STEEL
MOVEMENT JAPAN 7N42- OBCO A4
on the bracelet it writes:32S2-ZI

Hi,I have Seiko stainless steel selfdater waterproof diashock unbreakable mainspring SEA LION 17 jewels nm44 6206 8950 #5D01841 . Flexable stainless steel wristband. That is black with s/s edges. Thailand written on the inside and triangle symbols with marks in the center one pointing up the other down. Got it from my Grandfather. Whom I think got it from my uncle that served in Vietnam. Dark face with date. What’s with this watch? THANKS BARRON

If you have a Seiko 6206 with the Sea Lion symbol, you probably own the Seikomatic Weekdater automatic, a timepiece from the early 1960s. This was made on December 1965 during a period when Seiko used 7-digit serial numbers. Seiko has a long partnership with Muang Thong, the biggest Seiko distributor in Southeast Asia but I’m surprised to learn that the inside of your caseback says “Thailand”, which means the watch was cased in Thailand. The 6206 self-winding movement hails from Japan and was manufactured by Seiko’s Suwa factory (the other being the Daini plant).
There’s an excellent resource on the 6206 based automatics (in Japanese) which you can find here. This is one of Seiko’s rare and collectible examples.

Contrary to popular belief, Seiko doesn’t manufacture watch bracelets or leather straps. Since the corporation’s early days as the K. Hattori Watch Company, Seiko has always subcontracted the manufacture of watch bracelets to associate companies. They have a long business relationship with the Stellux Company of Hong Kong that makes the watch bracelets to Seiko’s specifications to this day. It might be plausible that a Thailand based factory made watch bands for Seiko timepieces way back in the sixties.
Unlike an elite and popular watch brand like Rolex, very little is known about every single Seiko model the Japanese watch company has ever made from the beginning. Even Seiko itself doesn’t have all the records and documentation of the models they have sold; and they had lost valuable records of vintage Seiko watches in a fire at their headquarters many decades ago.

You can buy a Rolex collectors’ handbook that covers every watch that the Rolex company had made even from the 1950s, but there’s unfortunately none for Seiko watches. They made far too many models that anyone can possibly research and collate. Due to the lack of comprehensive information on long discontinued Seiko watches, we depend on available postings on watch forums and blogs.

Please accept my apologies for not being able to reply sooner. 🙁 I have just gotten down to check my blog’s incoming messages, so here we go!

Your Seiko SQ 5Y23-8A11 is production date is June 1992. You are correct in saying that the watch’s movement was made by Japan’s Daini factory, since the “double lightning bolt” is the mark of the Daini factory. Seiko once assembled its generic quartz watches in Japan, but from the early 90s onwards they shifted the production to Singapore. If you have a Seiko quartz that says “JAPAN” on the dial, then it would have been fully assembled in Japan. The fact that your dial says “Mov’t Japan” automatically disqualifies it from being made as early as 1982. From the “0400” serial number, your watch was the 401st unit that was made for the month of July 1992 since the first piece made would have the serial numbers “620000”.

Seiko initially made casebacks for their watches in Japan but as it was cheaper to have them made in Hong Kong, since then all casebacks are made in Hong Kong (now China). The same goes for your stainless steel bracelet. The K. Hattori Seiko company has had a long business relationship with the Stellux Company from Hong Kong, which manufactures watch bracelets for Seiko. The fact that your date calendar has French as its secondary language suggests that it was marketed to French speaking countries (not necessarily just France).
The 5Y23 is a single jeweled quartz movement. It was not unusual for Seiko’s quartz movements to have a few jewels for lubrication purposes back then but today, modern Seiko quartz movements (except for Kinetics) don’t have a need for synthetic jewels (they’re often made from industrial grade rubies).

I purchased a Seiko Quartz 0val 10k nugget bracelet watch that has tiny diamonds on the circling he outside of the watch case from local Pawn Shop for $225.00 in 1990. On the sales receipt I just has 10K nugget Seiko watch. Do you think this is 10k gold filled for what I paid for the watch or could I have just been taken? Please please please answer.

AFAIK, I have not seen any Seiko watch with genuine (not man-made) diamonds adorning the watch bezel although Seiko has from time to time, has sold watches with cases made from 18K solid gold. A Seiko watch made from solid gold will have the markings “18K Solid Gold” on the caseback, while a gold plated one will have the initials “SGP” which stands Seiko Gold Plated.
If you’d like me to take a look at your watch, kindly take clear photos of the pawn store Seiko and upload it to the free www.tinypic.com image hosting service. I will also need to see the back of the watch. When you’ve done that, reply back to me with the direct URL link to the photos that you’ve uploaded to Tinypic.

My apologies for the late reply as I’ve not been attending to my blog lately. The answer is a resounding “Yes” – I was once a very active member on the old Seiko & Citizen Watch Forum site and served at least two years as one of the forum moderators. I have since moved on to other hobbies, mainly dSLR photography and am an active participant on Flickr. 🙂

That’s a good question. I assume that your watch is a Seiko 5 although you didn’t mention it in your original question. If it is a Seiko 5 (and doesn’t say “JAPAN” on the dial in fine print), yours was manufactured on September 1994. It was assembled by Seiko Hong Kong with the 7009 movement sourced from Seiko’s Daini factory in Japan. The 7009 was a popular, inexpensive mechanical movement before Seiko replaced it with the long running, 7s26 caliber which is still in production to this day.

I’m so glad to have found your site. It is very informative. I have recently purchased a lady’s Seiko that I found very intriguing on eBay. Whomever had this watch wore it so much that the gold tone has completely worn off on the inside of the band.

It just tells a story to me. But I was wondering if you could tell me about when and where it was made. I have not been able to find much about it online but do think it was made in February in either the 70’s or 80’s according to what I have found although it seems much older to me.

The face is more of an oval diamond like shape with Seiko Quartz and only the Roman Numeral 12 and the single quartz symbol above where the 6 would be, centered. No other marking or letters other than the dots for the other numbers on a black face. It is gold toned with a dainty nugget type band and safety chain attached. The back reads Seiko SGP BACK ST. STEEL 020208 1400-5220 R Japan MS lightning bolt symbol. And it does work. Any information is greatly appreciated!

Thanks for sharing your anecdote on how you came across this Seiko ladies’ watch on eBay. 🙂

The reason why little or no information can be found about this watch on the Internet is because there’s very little general interest in vintage Seiko watches for women. It is not uncommon to find a gold plated (not solid gold) Seiko watch on eBay with highly worn, oxidized outer finish. The gold plating which Seiko used is highly sensitive to moisture, humidity and most of all – the natural acid in the original owner’s sweat. You can be sure that whoever owned this watch wore it on a daily basis.

As quartz Seiko models for women didn’t exist as early as 1970, therefore the correct production date for your Seiko would be February 1980. Your watch was made by Seiko’s Daini factory in Japan (the other one being the Suwa factory). Take note that the original bracelet and safety chain are no longer in production and in all probability, Seiko Japan doesn’t have the exact replacement bracelet for this timepiece.

Seiko dress watches like yours are generally not water-resistant, therefore make sure not to expose it to rain or tap water when washing your hands. Quartz watches are unfortunately like electronic devices. If you have a radio or TV set from 1980, the possibility of getting the original parts or components for it is nil.

Hope this answers your question. Wishing you Season’s Greetings and a Happy New Year! 🙂

Hi Quartzimodo, I have a Seiko 5 automatic 21 jewels.on the back it says ‘STAINLESS STEEL 6119-8090 WATERPROOF’ and serial no. ‘ 861545 JAPAN G ‘. I’d like to know more about this watch which belonged to my late father. I figure it would be from the 1960’s. Thanks. Franco

This is an easy question. 🙂 You have a 6119-8090 dating from June 1968 which is the correct timeline for Seiko watches with the 6119 fully automatic movement. I have at least one 6119 Seiko 5 Sports myself a yellow dialed 6119-7060, which was purchased second hand.

Do note that the 6119 caliber has only the “quickset” date changing and not the day-of-week. You’ll have to press in the crown hard to change the date (do this between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m), while the day-of-week can only be changed by pulling the crown out to the main time setting. The fastest way to change the day-of-week is to rotate the crown well past 12 a.m (on the watch, that is) until the calendar advances to the next day.

Turn the hour hand back and forth between 10 p.m. and 1 a.m. until you reach the correct day. If you accidentally passed the correct day (e.g. it’s Thursday but you advanced the calender to Friday), you’ll have to repeat the process until the calendar wheel displays Thursday.

If you intend to wear your dad’s watch on a daily basis, I would recommend that you have the watch cleaned and its accuracy regulated by a competent watch repairer.

I hope you can help me with the following details: 7S26-0020 [A0] Serial number: 135837

Base on the Seiko Watch Production Date Calculator, it shows that this watch Production Date was status as March 2001. But could it be March 2011 as I bought it at a shopping mall only this month (DEC 2014) and it’s a brand new set.

The Seiko production date calculator has its limitations – it cannot account for watches with movements that are in production for more than 10 years. This is why its simple algorithm assumes that your watch was made in 2001. Somewhere out there, someone owns the same watch model as you do with the exact serial numbers; but he has the one that was actually manufactured on March 2001.

A NOS (New Old Stock) Seiko watch dating back to 2001 would already be showing signs of aging. Its protective blue sticker on its caseback would have gummed up and may have lost its deep blue color. You may find some light scratches on the case or caseback too. A watch from 2011 would not show such tell-tale signs.

The SKX007K is one of Seiko’s highly popular models since it was first introduced back in 1996. It’s very unlikely that you’ve gotten the one that was made in 2001. If you’re still curious to know whether you’ve got the one from 2001, you’ll have to open up the caseback and look at the oscillating balance weight.

Any 7s26 powered Seiko watch that’s from 2001 will have “7S26A” inscribed on it. The 7s26A was first introduced in 1996 and was replaced by the slightly improved, 7s26B caliber in 2006. The 7s26B had a rather short production run spanning a few years and Seiko replaced the “B” version with the 7s26C. Therefore, if your watch’s balance weight is inscribed with anything other than “7s26A”, you can definitely rule out the year 2001.

That said, in all likelihood your watch is fitted with the latest 7S26C movement which automatically confirms that your Seiko was made on March 2011. Don’t worry about the fact that you’ve bought an SKX007K that’s over three years old. In the world of Seiko watches, a piece that’s made in 2011 is considered “new”, although it’s not “factory fresh”. Mechanical watches age very, very slowly and they are not like digital gadgets such as smartphones or digital cameras.

If you’re comparing to the digital device realm, you’d want to get a smartphone that’s manufactured in 2014 rather than 2013. This is because smartphones are fitted with rechargeable batteries that age the moment they leave the factory. The same applies to notebooks, tablets and MP3 players. You’d want to get a digital device that’s from a very recent stock because you the unit is usually sold “as is”. Of course, you can make a warranty claim for a device with an aged battery – but you’ll have to go through the hassle of having it sent to the repair center.

In the case for quartz Seiko watches, most retailers will happily swap the battery with a fresh one (it costs them next to nothing) if you know that they’re from an old stock. Generally, quartz watches have an average battery life between 3-5 years, depending on the model; and if they had been made in 2001 the battery would already be dead on the retailer’s shelf. Obviously the seller will have to replace the battery (at their expense) when you buy it.

Hope this clears your concerns and enjoy your new SKX007K in good health! 🙂

You are correct in dating the manufacturing month and year for your Seiko 7T36-7A00 “Moonphase” SQ watch. So the date is January 1990 and yours was the 430th piece to be assembled for that same model and month/year. The 7T36 caliber lived a rather short life compared to the more popular, Seiko 7T32 alarm-chronograph.

Seiko “Moonphase” window models were once a passing trend, beginning with the late 1980s up to the mid 1990s. Although the Moonphase watch fad was later picked up by certain Swiss watch marques and Citizen’s Campanola “artistic” watch lineup, it was only well past 2010 when Seiko slowly re-introduced watches with the Moonphase window, e.g. the SRX003P Kinetic Direct Drive Moon Phase using a new 5D88 Kinetic based caliber.

Even then such models are pretty limited to the upmarket Seiko Premier dress watch range, unlike the “affordable” Moonphase models sold in the early 90s.

The 7T36 as you already know, is a long discontinued caliber. Contrary to what some people tend to believe, Seiko doesn’t produce a spare movement for every watch that they manufacture using the same movement. It’s like automobile manufacturers; if the Honda company has sold a million 2.4 liter Accord sedans worldwide, it doesn’t mean that they also matched that same number in wholly assembled, replacement engines. 🙂

Although Seiko does make individual components for the 7T36 movement, it doesn’t mean that such components will be readily available, especially after a decade had passed. It’s a long shot, buy you can try contacting Seiko Japan if they can find some leftover replacement 7T36 movements in their pats warehouse. Failing that, your only recourse is to actively scout eBay for second hand 7T36 watches whose sellers guarantee that their watches function normally.

Used Seiko 7T36 models shouldn’t cost that much on eBay and what you’re really after is its movement; not the watch itself. Therefore the exterior condition of the watch need not be in pristine condition. Stop the presses! Here’s one French eBay seller who is advertising new old stock (NOS) replacement 7T36 movements. At this time of writing, she claims that she has only ten units and already having sold four.

I wouldn’t say it’s dirt cheap for its asking price at 105 Euros (approx US$120), but at least you are assured of receiving a whole movement assembly that’s never been used. If you truly are emotionally attached to your Seiko 7T36-7A00, I think this is worth the investment. If you were able to send your watch to Seiko Japan for a movement replacement, you’re probably looking at spending over US$100 in repair bills and shipping anyway.

Forget the hassle of the trial-and-error repair by your local jeweler. Just like restoring a vintage car that you love, it’s much cheaper to exchange the old motor with an old stock, replacement engine than having it disassembled into pieces, overhauled and reassembled.

Good luck and please update me if you managed to revive your Seiko 7T36 using this rarely found, new old stock movement! 🙂

Deep into the past (I’m taking about at least three decades here), Seiko used to make a few dual or single language calendar versions for the primary markets the watches were sold to. From the pictures that I’ve collected, I’ve seen Seiko watches that had Japanese, French, German, Italian, Spanish and Farsi secondary languages. There was talk about Seiko having made English/Mandarin versions but this info wasn’t verifiable.

I think the English/Farsi language is the rarest version of all and it’s possible that such watches were confined to the Iranian export market. Up until the mid 2000s, there were Seiko watches that had the English/Spanish language calendars. From 2004 onwards, this dual language option disappeared from the market and was replaced by the international, English/Roman numeral version.

Between the Eng/Arabic and Eng/Roman day calendars, the latter is the more common of the two. The market for Seiko watches for the Arab speaking nations is pretty huge for Seiko; and AFAIK the company still makes Eng/Arabic versions. You can get Seiko watches with Eng/Arabic calendars by either buying them in the Middle East countries like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and UAE – or from Southeast Asian eBay sellers that are able to procure such watches for the Middle East export market. 🙂

The SKX007J and SKX011J have different cosmetic appearances. I started off with the SKX007J first before deciding to buy the rarer, orange dialed SKX011J. Ten years ago the fate of the SKX011J was unknown (whether Seiko would cease making it) therefore I got one for myself. One that’s worth collecting would be the yellow dialed, SKXA35 that’s sold only in the United States. It’s a bit hard on the eyes due to its dial and hands’ lower contrast but if you are into collecting the 7s26-0020 divers’ watch family the SKXA35 would be a very nice addition. 🙂

Generally black colored dial versions are the easiest to sell; therefore expect the SKX007J to be around as long as there’s sufficient global demand for it. Orange dialed watches appeal to fewer consumers and Seiko has been known to phase out models that they no longer wish to continue selling, without informing the public. Therefore, if you intend to collect the SKX011J too (my emphasis is on the word “collect”) to be on the safe side, get the SKX011J first and the black SKX007J later.

Hi Quartzimodo,
Thank you so much for your detailed reply, really informative, your knowledge is astounding!
I am going to do my best to get the ‘moon phase’ Seiko going again.
I will keep you informed if there is progress.
Kind regards,
Garth

I would really buy that replacement 7T36 movement from that French eBay seller if I were you. She has a 14-day return policy if the movement doesn’t work as it’s supposed to. That’s plenty of time for your watchmaker or jeweler to replace your old movement with the new one. It is extremely seldom to find an eBay seller having new old stock, complete movements for sale – what more a very rare caliber like your 7T36!

I don’t know how the seller was able to obtain those spare 7T36 movements and I don’t suppose the Seiko France repair center will have any left in their inventory. She may have been in the watch repair/watch spare parts business but whatever it is, this is your best solution. I happen to own a rare, used Seiko 7T59-6A0A GMT 1/100sec chronograph and its movement is in dire need of a replacement. I would be extremely ecstatic if I could find a new old stock 7T59 movement on eBay! 🙂

You might just be the coolest person on the internet. I have never seen someone so dedicated to answering every single question in such depth. I really appreciate all of the time and care you have put into this blog the past 7 years.

I wanted to figure out as much as I could before I came to ask you a couple of identification/misc. questions; I’m sure they will seem silly to you, but I am stuck.

The first watch is very similar to this one (mine has a serial number of 413155, ref. no. Z1068): www.kaplans.se/en/auktioner/2476/vara/924737
The only differences I have noted is that on the front of my watch, it says “JAPAN 9029-5000T” (and then a little black diamond looking thing — meaning?) — something that is absent in the picture on the above link. Other discrepancies between my watch and the one listed on the website are: a). My watch (on the “sgp st.” (meaning?) steel back, the mvmt. is 9029-5000 and RO (in a little box) as opposed to the website’s “9029-5009” — could just be an error, 9 instead of 0, but there is also no RO or T (like there is on the dial of mine. b). The date on the website reads “approx. 1993” when the calculator said January of 1994 (or 1984!) but I guess that’s why it says it’s an approximation. This watch only cost me $5 and has subsequently stopped running (dropped by friend), but used to be my favorite to wear! Website says retail was about $200 USD (after conversion from kroners). Accurate?

For the next two watches, I’ve also used the Seiko Production Date Calculator — but, as you know, that only narrows it down to decade estimation.

The first was my dad’s — calculator puts it in October of 1991, which is my best guess (although the only pictures I have with it on his wrist are about 1999 — maybe he bought it later). Identical to this watch: www.ebay.com/itm/Seiko-S3-Quartz-Men-039-s-Watch-with-a-Jubilee-Band-5Y23-8A69-/131346586785
5Y23-8A69 A4 (in little box – I read in an earlier comment that might mean it’s a “5th generation”, after A0, A1, etc.?) Serial No. 100358. Couldn’t find a retail value on this one.

The first two watches are unfortunately not in running condition; I would like to fix them because I have enjoyed wearing both, however the watch repairman I visited said the movements were both shot (the first watch likely due to the drop (although it worked for about 3 weeks after that) and the second “datejust” styled watch due to corrosion – I can definitely see that; the gold plating has worn away and the crown fell off a year or two ago). I am keeping them mostly for sentimental purposes.

Finally, the most important, and main reason I decided to seek help online (which led me here!) are for a watch very similar, if not identical, to this (www.ebay.com/itm/231470903903), although the clasp on the back does not say “SEIKO” – just blank and much longer than the clasp on my dad’s Seiko – could have been replaced/added later, I suppose). This watch (thankfully!) is in great working order (7N43-8119, also an “A4”, serial no. 343832) but does not have the “SQ” on the front like my dad’s does. I at first thought that meant that it was from the mid-1990s and that dad’s had the “SQ” because it was earlier (from 1991). However, now that I am also unsure of the 1991, and because my grandpa (this was his old piece) thinks it was from April of 1983, makes me unsure of the actual production date. My gut says April 1993, but I’m not the one who wore it for years. I obviously know that all three of these watches are worth next to nothing, especially the two that aren’t in working condition (any idea how to fix old movements/where to find them?), but I would like your best guess as the retail value of this watch as well.

Again, thank you SO much for the time you take in answering our questions — what I would give to be as knowledgeable as you about watches! What an amazing line of work.

Please let me know if you have any questions: I tried to be as descriptive as possible.

Great question. Seiko originally designed the SKX013K as a mid-sized, diver’s watch although the company never advertised this model as a “boy’s watch” or a “ladies’ watch”. Unlike their discontinued, 150m water resistant 4205 caliber “ladies’ diver” watches, the SKX013K is much bigger than the slightly “feminine looking” 4205-1040 model. Therefore you can regard the SKX013K as either a small sized, men’s diver’s watch or a boy’s diver’s watch. 🙂

Today, the distinction between men’s and women’s timepieces has become less straightforward than it used to be, like in the 1980s. Unless the design of a watch is obviously feminine (e.g., dress watch, small face, blingy bracelet), the recent trends have seen women wearing extra large watches that rival standard sized, men’s wristwatches. Then there are also fashion watches that are unisex in design and it doesn’t matter if men or women wear them. 🙂

If you intend to buy the SKX031K for a woman, find out if she doesn’t mind wearing a diver’s watch in the first place. Some ladies may like large timepieces but may not necessary prefer the tool-like appearance of diver’s watches.

I didn’t know it but I am a Seiko watch collector.
I have three watches, two of which I do not seem to be able to date:
1)6530-5479 RO/401078. on the face,Japan6350-5880 T;
2)7813-8029/7D0393 J, on the face, Japan 7813-8029 T;
3) 6217-7000/4501873. I have a pretty good idea what this one is. Slight scratches on the back but the Olympic emblem is nearly pristine

Apologies for belated reply as I don’t check into this old blog of mine as often as I used to. 🙁

Here’s what I’ve gathered so far:

1. 6530-5479 – This is one of Seiko’s countless and forgetten gent’s simple quartz dress watches from the 1990s. Serial number dates it to October 1984. It’s likely to be a U.S. export model and Seiko only made one version of the movement – the 6530A with 5 jewels. It has no complications and displays only the hour and minute. Requires a Seiko or Maxell 920SW or Energizer U.C.C 371 1.55 volt battery, with an approximate lifespan of 3 years. Fully assembled in Japan.

2. 7813-8029 – I think this is another one of those Seiko Quartz “SQ” men’s dress watches which is also a North America export model. Most likely from December 1987 and was fully assembled in Japan. Only one version of this module existed – the 7813A, also with 5 jewels. Requires a Maxell SR927SW (SB-AP) 1.5v silver oxide cell, with a 2 year battery life. Oddly there’s a trimmer capacitor (or condenser) built into the module, which the watch technician can fine tune its quartz crystal oscillator’s accuracy.

3. 6217-7000 – Wow, this one is a Seiko motherlode. It’s a very highly collectible Seiko “Navigator” automatic watch with an additional 24-hour hand that’s fixed to the main time hands. Unlike true GMT mechanical watches, you can’t set the 24-hour hand to a different time zone. Instead you have to align the inner bezel that’s marked with the major cities of the world and need to perform some mental math to know what time it is in say, Calcutta/Rangoon or Noumea. Since the city bezel doesn’t rotate on its own, you’ll have to manually align the name of the city to the 24 hour hand. At least I think that’s how it’s done – I’ve really forgotten how to keep track of the world time with this antiquated method.

The 6217 series watches are highly sought after by Seiko enthusiasts to this day. I happen to own a vintage 6117-6400 World Timer, which isn’t as valuable as the 6217-7000. The fact that yours is the commemorative edition in conjunction with the 1964 Tokyo Olympics makes this an extremely rare bird. One in almost mint condition can easily fetch as high as US$650 thereabouts. Obviously, yours was manufactured on May 1964 while I was still in my mother’s womb. 😉

Don’t sell this one unless you really and desperately need the money. Or have totally lost all interest in Seiko watch collecting, like I eventually did! 🙂

This is one of Seiko’s popularly selling designs. Even after the 7009 movement was long phased out, Seiko continued making several Seiko 5 models in that shape but based on the newer 7s26 caliber. I’ve seen quite a few early 7s26 powered Seiko 5 automatics with that design back in 2003. 🙂

Your father’s 7009-3170 was from Nov 1988 and not 1978. This watch was assembled by Seiko’s factory in Hong Kong and not in Japan. The shape of the case and bracelet is also that of a Seiko 5 from the late 1980s rather than one from the 1970s.

wow after such a long time you are still helping us. Just great.
I have a Seiko 7009-3130 from which I’m hoping it was manufactured 1980 but unfortunately it could also be 1990. Not sure if the design is eighties, nineties or both so I hope you could help me with your advice. Sorry for the bad picture of the front. The glass has to be replaced.

Thanks for the compliments! 🙂 You’ve fielded me a relatively easy question here and it really helped me by furnishing the links to photos of your old Seiko 5 7009-3130 watch.

This model was manufactured by Seiko’s factory in Hong Kong, on May 1990. The 7009 movement was however, sourced from Seiko Japan’s Daini factory. Seiko 5 watches with this integrated bracelet styling was quite popular for decades and I onced owned a 7s26 based, SKXM19K model (if I’m not mistaken) over a decade ago. Although it had a totally different face styling, the case is quite similar.

I remember buying it from a local watch store for about US$43 back in 2004. It later developed a fault which would have cost me more to repair it than to buy a new one, so I gave it away. I believe Seiko reintroduced a Seiko 5 model nearly similar to the long discontinued SKXM19K a few years ago, but I don’t remember its model reference no.

There’s a good probability that you can find the original Seiko Hardlex glass for your 7009-3130 – if it also fits the later 7s26 models based on this exact design.

Your father’s vintage Seiko dress watch is indeed genuine. Here’s an example of one in pristine condition. This is a 1990s design, simple gent’s dress watch from Seiko and it’s dated Feb 1997, while the example in that website is from Jan 1994. Both the 7N22-8A00s were assembled in Singapore with Japan sourced watch parts.

I got a Seiko watch and I would like to have more info on it:
The marking on the case: 5 bar, water resistant 5 bar,st steel, + base metal,
7N82-5049, R1, 7D1473
Do I need to open the case to get more info to date it?
Thanks

From the caliber and caseback numbers which you had supplied, I narrowed your Seiko watch down to the model SXE878. This is very likely a North American export model, gents’ dress model. The 7N82 is a simple quartz movement with only the date calendar being its “complications”.

I’m not familiar with history of the 7N82 caliber but I think Seiko used this mostly for its quartz dress watches. Judging from its integrated bracelet design and the cabochon crown, it looks like it was designed in the late 1990s. My best guess is that December 1997 as its manufacturing date would be about right. It’s also the 1,474th piece to come out from the factory in Singapore for this particular model.

interesting data,
i have been given a seiko 5 sports with a 7S2B movement and a serial number 161607, and a transparent back , (a rubbish design step imho ) and would like to know its manuf date
i have had a seiko 5 for 12 years but now its somewhat erratic but the cost of a good service exceeds cost of a new watch
rgds

Although you didn’t furnish your Seiko 5 Sports’ caseback code numbers, knowing the exact movement version also helps in identifying the manufacturing date.
A Seiko 5 watch with the “7S26B” caliber, with the serial numbers 161607, puts your watch at June 2011. However, I can’t ID your watch model as I don’t know its caseback numbers.

Seiko watches with the low cost 7S26-type automatic mechanism are cheaper to have the entire movement replaced, rather than repaired. More often that not, the accuracy of your old Seiko 5 can be restored to its factory specs by having your watch inspected by a competent watchmaker and have the movement regulated for accuracy. I am not sure what you actually meant by “erratic” though; but the fix can be as simple as sending it for a “regulation job” or re-calibration.

On the other hand, if your old Seiko 5 has a more complicated problem such as a sticking (or sticky) mainspring, the solution may be as simple as cleaning the gunk that’s accumulated in the mainspring or requiring a complete replacement of the mainspring itself. If the main spring needs to be changed, your watch repairer might suggest replacing the entire movement, which can cost about US$40 for a brand new 7s26 unit. The total repair bill (inclusive of labor) will depend on the watch repairer or the Seiko service center.

I can’t say whether you should spend a sum of money on reviving your old Seiko 5 watch or buy a totally new watch. Some people regard watches as disposable time keepers, therefore they’d rather buy a brand new and shiny Seiko 5. Others who have sentimental ties to a particular watch won’t mind having them repaired at any cost.

Hi
Great blog, I look forward to reading through all the posts here.
I recently acquired a 6309-729a, it was in good shape but had a few aftermarket parts.
I’ve just started exploring but where in Malaysia (specifically KL) could I find some good reproduction or original parts? Specifically the dial, chapter ring, hands, bezel, bezel inserts. Appreciate some help, thanks!

The reason your watch came with aftermarket parts is because Seiko made poor quality dials for the second generation 6309 divers’ models and they faded too quickly, unlike the first generation 6309-704x models. Apparently the same thing happened to the replacement model for the 6309-729x – the 7002-700x Seiko divers.

Unfortunately I can’t help you with your quest in finding original parts; they are long gone. It’s a long shot, but you could try your luck by visiting the Thong Sia service center along Jalan Sultan Ismail, KL. At one time they did stock on replacement parts for selected, vintage Seiko models. There might be one or two old shops in Malaysia that happen to have 6309-729x watch parts but I don’t know who they are or where they are located. Even if they do have the parts, old shops are unlikely to advertise on the Internet so you’ll have to look for information from the grapevine, or word of mouth. 🙁

For reproduction parts, I would suggest that you search on eBay – particularly sellers from the Philippines. For some reason, someone in the Philippines is still making aftermarket parts for certain vintage Seiko watches. There are no KL based watch stores that sell aftermarket Seiko parts that I know of, sorry. 🙁

Alternatively, rather than putting up with a non-genuine Seiko dial you could give your watch a new makeover by purchasing modded parts. With the right matching watch hands and chapter ring, the end result could be beyond your initial expectations! 🙂

I have two 6309-704x divers; one is in all-original condition while the other one (with a reproduction dial that I didn’t particularly like) was modded with parts from Yobokies. I did this about ten years ago and I really like how the modified watch face looks. 🙂

Thanks a lot for your reply, within which was more help than 3 weeks of going in and out of watch shops in KL! I hope to find something at Thong Sia, and maybe consider eBay and Dagaz watches (when our currency improves) for some long-term mods.

I have a question about my father’s Seiko 7009 876a {F} model… Do you know approximately year or place of production? I searched and googled for it but either the bracelet doesn’t match with the model I have or the background with the pic I found so far on the web. It looks like this one , but has like shimmering stripes on it…

Thank you for providing a link to a Seiko that’s similar to your father’s watch. If your Seiko 5 7009 is identical to the image from that sales website, then it’s a Hong Kong assembled Seiko 5. You’ll have to tell me the 6-digit serial number from the caseback for me to know when it was made. 🙂

Thank you so much 🙂 The model I have is almost identical to the one from pic – double golden ribby look a like stripes for n 12 and only one stripe for n 6, grayish background, only Seiko that I have has like striped grayish background :). And the serial number is 634360.

It was bought in Europe 20 years ago or so, but I guess you don’t need my help at all 😀 🙂

I assume you’re referring to your watch dial’s numbers. Generally watch restorers are not able to repair the “golden stripes” as it involves painstaking work that’s not worth the effort, not to mention the cost of such intricate restoration. Not even Seiko watch technicians will undertake the job. It’s a lot easier to replace the entire dial – that is, if you can find a replacement dial in the first place. 🙁

Your Seiko 7009-876A was manufactured in March 1986, if my estimation is correct. It was assembled by Seiko’s overseas factory in Hong Kong but the watch parts were sourced from the old Daini factory in Japan.

First, I must really thank you for all of the good information about Seikos that you have been providing here for years. I would really like to know as much as you can tell me about this watch. I was trying to get a made in Japan early quartz to start a collection of them. I bought an older Seiko quartz for not much money on Ebay and it is apparently one of the few 5s with a quartz movement? The screw on back is stamped “Seiko water-resistant 020968 JAPAN-KY a symbol,” (a so called lightning bolt symbol?), “Stainless steel 7123-8420-P A1” (the A1 is in a box). Thank you very much for your time and attention and efforts.

A Seiko 5 with a quartz movement? Yes, sometime in the early 1980s Seiko did experiment with quartz versions of the Seiko 5 watch; and the 7123 caliber was one of the quartz modules that they used.

Unfortunately, the Seiko watch buying public didn’t feel that that a quartz version of the Seiko 5 appealed to them. Historically, Seiko 5 watches have always been mechanical, automatic watches. Suffice to say, quartz Seiko 5 watches had a rather short production run and they were discontinued in a few years. Quartz Seiko 5 watches have become largely forgotten and they are curiosity timepieces rather than sought after collectibles. That’s why you were able to score one cheaply on eBay. 🙂

Since that failed marketing experiment, Seiko makes only automatic Seiko 5 timepieces while quartz analog models are simply marketed as “Seiko”, without the “5” moniker. If I had to guess, I’d say your 7123-8420 was manufactured by the Daini watch plant in Japan on February 1980. I do not know what “KY” really means, sorry. It’s some kind of code that only certain Seiko factory employees would know.

With the exception of vintage quartz chronographs and diver’s models or historically significant milestone Seiko quartz watches, generic Seiko dress watches carry little resale value compared to its mechanical counterparts. Note that the Seiko company no longer provides spare parts for long discontinued quartz models. When that 7123 movement goes dead eventually, you can only revive it by finding a donor 7123 Seiko watch and perform a complete movement swap.

Thanks for asking. I have since moved on to other interests like dSLR photography since 2009, which takes up quite a lot of my hobby time. I don’t collect watches as I used to and no one really reads reviews of watches (especially discontinued and vintage ones) compared to general knowledge on e.g., Seiko watches. 🙁

The best Japanese watch blog, in my opinion is Yeoman’s Watch Review. Thomas Yeo owns many more watches than I do and he buys quite a few Seiko and Orient watches every year. Many of them are the upper midrange Prospex and Orient Start models are way too expensive for me. He also has access to a local watch store in Singapore (a shop called “K2 Watches”); whose owner lets him photograph the new arrivals from Citizen, Orient and Seiko which he doesn’t intend to buy. Sometimes I would drop by his blog to comment on certain models that he reviews. 🙂

I’ve never written about Alpinist watches in depth; but have probably made a passing mention of long discontinued SCVF005 Alpinist with the highly rated 4S15 high beat movement in one of my posts. And yes, I happen to own a green dialed, Seiko SARB017 Alpinist (6R15, 200m water resist, sapphire glass) which I asked my sister to buy on my behalf when she was visiting Tokyo last year. 🙂

It’s a very well crafted timepiece and the emerald green dial exudes a brilliant sheen (semi-matte finish), which Seiko has been famous for since the 1970s. I have not worn it yet though and it still sits in the original Seiko box. The SARB017 is unfortunately smaller than photos suggest; and I think it’s smaller than 42mm in diameter. Having used to wearing standard sized diver’s watches like the evergreen SKX007J, the diminutive looking SARB017 is a bit hard to read with my 50+ old eyes. 🙁

This is a watch that definitely screams for a much larger dimensions in light of today’s trend of over-sized timepieces. I’m not sure why Seiko made it into a small sized, 39mm diameter watch, considering that some of its contemporary Seiko 5 Sports models can be found measuring at 44mm across.

The SARB017 can be purchased with an optional stainless steel Seiko bracelet which IMO, makes the watch looks sportier. Its factory issued brown leather is a perfect match for its green dial (green and brown are complementary, earth tones) but I think the stock leather strap gives the SARB017 a dressier look.

You can still buy the current Alpinists from online sellers in Japan such as Chino Watch, Higuchi Inc and K. Seiya. I doubt if Thong Sia will bring in these watches into Malaysia. No one knows when Seiko decided to stop manufacturing the SARB01x models, therefore if you fancy one – buy before it’s too late! 😉

Thanks for all of that good info Quartzimodo. I really don’t care what it’s worth, it has to be worth more than USD$28? I just like it. It keeps good time. I’m already looking for a donor 7123 btw. Having no adult supervision I went and got a very good condition, all TITANIUM, SMA163 AUTO RELAY, CARBON FIBER DIAL, WATCH 5J22-0D80, a so called “dress diver”, from eBay. I’m waiting to get it in the mail now. It is supposed to have a fresh Li on upgrade already done. It’s kind of shiny for my usual tastes, but I do love titanium so I got it. Now I’m a little worried because I am not as active as I once was, I’m pushing 67. But I got it to be my everyday wear. So we’ll see. I might have to break out the ol snow machine more this winter? I very much enjoyed your article on Seiko kinetics. I was very informative and entertaining. Thanks again. SteveJ

Do note that non Dura Shield coated Seiko titanium watches are rather prone to scuffs and scratches; therefore take good care when wearing your new timepiece. I have a few Seiko titanium watches myself and I only wear them occasionally to keep them as pristine as I can. One of my earliest Seiko titanium watches is the hard-to-find, Prospex SBDQ003. I’m very careful whenever it’s on my wrist and eleven years on, I think it can pass for a brand new watch. 🙂

All 5J22 Kinetic Auto Relay watches are fitted with the Maxell TC-920S rechargeable lithium ion cell when they were first introduced. Kinetic models that had the older type, capacitor energy storage unit were the ones before the year 2001. Assuming that the lithium ion cell has very little self-discharge properties, it’s possible to awaken an Auto Relay watch from a 4-year deep slumber (as claimed by Seiko).

If there’s anything to look out for – it’s the titanium bracelet that comes with your watch. The problem with integrated bracelet designs is that they are specifically designed for the watch head. Therefore it’s virtually impossible to substitute an integrated bracelet with say, a leather or polyurethane band. So if you intend to wear the SMA163P for a very long time, consider buying a spare titanium watch band (Part Number: 30F6-MG) from the Seiko service center before the Seiko Japan runs out of this bracelet. 🙂

Good luck on searching for a donor 7123 based Seiko watch. The exterior condition doesn’t matter as what you really want is the movement that’s in good running condition! 🙂

About a month ago I did just this and got hold of the SARB017, a beautiful watch overall that belays its price tag and despite all the negative reviews of the stock strap I think it has a justified place with the watch too. I do feel that it is a small size for a modern watch but still it just passes as an ‘explorer type tool watch’ especially for my small wrists. If u want a larger comparison the SARG007/005 I think is what Seiko is trying to replace the SARB line with at 40mm.

The fact the SARB line may come to an end soon is also why I insisted on it too, I hope that is the case =D as I enjoy the watch and have high regard for the 6R15 workhorse so the rarer the better.

If you want legibility; there’s nothing like a negative display G-shock =P I hope to read more from your blog in the future.

P.s.: Took your advice and made multiple mods for my loved 6309. Thanks.

Congratulations on getting the underrated Seiko Alpinist SARB017! 🙂 I have mulled over buying one for years but didn’t make the move to order one online. If it wasn’t because my sister’s working trip to Osaka last year, I probably would have procrastinated buying this watch.

My last online purchase of a watch was back in 2009 and I managed to snag one of the very last pieces of the orange dialed, SBDA005 Ti Samurai diver. Even then it’s still on its factory issued, Z-22 flat vent rubber strap and I haven’t swapped it for a more comfortable Morellato Cordura Lorica leather band or a matching silicone strap. 🙂

The green SARB017 is a collectible model and Seiko’s attention to detail is simply amazing. I showed it to my watchmaker and never having seen one, he was quite impressed with its design. I can’t say much for Seiko’s factory issue leather straps and I think their wearing comfort depends on how expensive the watch model is.

I would replace the original brown leather strap with a third party brand like Morellato or De Rivoli. Leather bands don’t last long in our hot ad humid weather and the more often you wear it, the quicker it frays and creases. We don’t know how long Seiko will continue to stock the exact replacement leather strap and it’s easier to look for a third party leather band from any of the local watch stores.

Thanks for your suggestion on the SARG-series 6R15 models. I think the white dialed, SARG001 looks better than the SARG007 with the Arabic numerals. I have no idea if the SARG lineup falls under the Seiko “Spirit” sub-range but on the other hand, they are not marketed under the “Alpinist” moniker. IMO, the SARG007 is a “generic” JDM 6R15 automatic watch, like the “new” SBDC025 Black Monster. Speaking of which, I haven’t browsed the Seiko Japan website for ages and was surprised to see lots of new JDM offerings with the 6R15 movement and the recently introduced 8R49 automatic chronograph caliber.

It could be possible that Seiko has decided to drop the Alpinist line and if this is true, the SARB017 will go down in history as being the final Alpinist model. Too bad that it’s not as large as the 4S15 powered SCVF005 Alpinist though. 🙁

You got a very good deal out of the SARB017 Alpinist, in light of Seiko’s severely inflated prices of its newest models (especially newcomers to its Prospex and Presage range). If this watch were made by Oris and not Seiko, it would have cost you at least twice the price. 🙂

I have a Men’s Seiko watch. The face is white with black Roman numerals indicating the hours.The minute hand is black, the hour hand is black with a gold circle midway thru it. The center of the face looks like a map of the world with latitude and longitude markings. This center measures 3/4″ in diameter. The words just below the XII are the words SEIKO, QUARTZ and (in cursive lettering) Chronograph. At the 6 o’clock position is a dial with six setting positions: Time, Alarm On,
Set Alarm, Timer, Match, and Chronograph.A red triangle can be rotated to each position for the desired function by pulling the stem and turning it. On the outside perimeter, at the 8 and 10 o’clock positions, is a push button which move the hour and minute hads to set time, alarm, etc. The color of the body is gold. The case back is stainless. Production # is 071082. The other markings are: Water Resistant, Base Metal, St Steel Back, and 8M25-7109 followed by R1 enclosed in a rectangle. In the center of the back is a circle about 1/2″ in diameter. Within this circle is etched a ship of the type Christopher Columbus or Magellan would have sailed. It has 3 masts, sails fully billowed, flag at top of each mast.
What can you tell me of the age, value, rarity, and anything else you know about this, my favorite watch? Any info will be greatly appreciated.

You have one of the limited release, Age of Discovery (AoD) models which Seiko started releasing starting from the year 1990. It is presumed to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus. Seiko made several AoD series watches of varying calibers, including the:

The 8M25 is one of Seiko’s interesting and complicated quartz calibers. It’s one of the very few watches in the world that made use of the minute hand as the timer and stopwatch “second hand”. Not to mention the minute hand ticks in anti-clockwise direction in timer mode. 🙂

The downside of Seiko quartz watches with the 8M25 or 6M26 (with 1/10sec chronograph feature) is that using the heavier minute hand to act as the perpetual second hand consumes more battery power.

Your 8M25 is also 100% electronically operated and that the hands and date cannot be set mechanically. Seiko watches that are equipped with electronically actuated hands need battery power and if the battery is dead, you can’t manipulate the hands or the calendar mechanism at all. If I’m not wrong, the last quartz caliber with electronically actuated hour and minute hands which Seiko made, was the H024 analog-digital with a 1/1000sec digital stopwatch function.

Your watch serial number suggests that the watch was manufactured in July 1990. This is a 100% Japan made Seiko and I don’t think the company has any spare parts left for their legacy calibers like the 8M25. It will become a problem if your watch movement needs replacement parts someday.

As for the estimated value, I’ve seen a few eBay listings for unworn, New Old Stock (NOS) 8M25 watches with an asking price of US$300 on the average. That’s the non Age of Discovery model in mint, unworn condition. The list price also varies with the caliber; with quartz chronograph models selling at higher prices compared to an AoD series watch with simple hour and minute hands.

Your AoD 6M25 is a rare watch today, so take very good care of it! 🙂 I don’t know if Seiko will ever come out with quartz calibers with complications like the 6M25 and if they did, these watches will be quite expensive for a “quartz watch” that is not from its luxury Grand Seiko lineup. Perhaps consumer buying trends have changed since the 1990s, with the mass market today going for style over substance.

I’m not familiar with the 6602 caliber watches but it appears that your Seiko is from August 1974. This is not an automatic watch, but a mechanical hand-wind type. It has 18 jewels and is a slightly low beat (low accuracy) movement, with a 18,000 vibrations per hour rate.

I have no idea why there are no standard SEIKO inscriptions on the back of the case.

Here’s the problem: Seiko produced the old 7009 automatic caliber for about two decades, beginning from the 1970s. I’m not familiar with the Seiko 5 7009-3170 model and don’t know when exactly this watch first came out.

However, you can determine the decade it was made by looking at the dial near the 6 o’clock index marker. If you see the text “JAPAN”, followed by “7009” then it’s from October 1979. If the dial only says “7009” then it’s from October 1989. This is because in the mid 1980s, Seiko transferred the production of its low end automatic watches to its overseas factory in Hong Kong. On the other hand, a 7009 watch that’s made in 1979 would have been made at their Daini factory in Japan.

I’m afraid I’m not familiar with vintage Seiko ladies’ quartz watches, but if I had to take a guess – from your serial number 973568 it could have been from July 1989. This is on condition that on the dial next to the 6 o’clock marker you are able to see the very tiny markings: “JAPAN 5421”. If you only see “5421” then it would be from July 1999.

As for the value, Seiko ladies’ quartz watches generally won’t fetch above US$100 unless the metal case is made from solid gold. Stainless steel and gold plated models have very little resale value.

The reasons for this are quite straightforward actually:

1. Women generally prefer to wear brand NEW watches rather than pre-owned ones. Not unless that particular watch has a genuine sentimental value attached to it, e.g. heirloom watches.
2. Women usually treat watches as fashion accessories rather than a time keeping device. They want a contemporary design watch, not something from thirty years ago.
3. It is not a vintage Omega, Rolex, Cartier or (insert any big name Swiss brand here) ladies’ watch.

Men on the other hand, particularly those who collect old Seiko watches appreciate them for their historical significance and/or the watch technology itself. This is not to say that women will never buy a used Seiko watch, but if they do it’s because they saw a particular watch that they personally find attractive, usually from a flea market or a garage sale.

Thanks a lot for your reply! My dial has 7009 and the Daini logo at the 6 o’clock index marker. So I guess it’s made in 1979? I also asked my father and he said he remembered buying it during the late 70s – early 80s.

I apologize for the belated response to your latest comment as I didn’t get an email notification of your reply until I checked my blog comment panel today.

If a 7009 watch has a Daini logo on the dial AND the text “JAPAN 7009” besides the 6 o’clock marker, it would have been manufactured in 1979. On the other hand, if you see only “7009” (no “JAPAN” marking) then your watch was from 1989. Therefore the word “JAPAN” itself in this context, determines the correct year (and decade) when your watch was produced. 🙂

I have my grandfather Seiko that I can’t really understand what year was made… On internet most of the same model are 70’s (they said) but on the web site watchsleuth, at the seiko date finder the result is Mar 1996.
Maybe you can help me to find the right date…
so, the serial is: 632879 Japan-B 7009-8090.
One particular thing is that all the watches that I saw on-line was with blue clock dial, but mine is black.
I hope you can help me…

The reason why you got the wrong decade from an online Seiko watch production date calculator is that they are programmed only to look at the caliber but not the caseback type as well. So far, no one has gone to the trouble of compiling the caseback codes into the calculator as it takes an awful lot of research time and effort to do so.

Another issue is the fact that some Seiko movements were made spanning one or sometimes, two decades. The 7009 is an example of an automatic movement that originated in the 1970s but soldiered on into the 80s and probably, the early 90s. However looking at the styling of the 7009-8090 strongly suggests that your grandfather’s Seiko was manufactured in March 1976. 🙂

Hello, I’ve been reading through this and it has been very helpful!
However I do have an unresolved problem that I could not seem to solve. I’ve recently found a Seiko Quartz 5y23-6060 diver. It has the seriel code of 081998. I could not seem to locate much information regarding the watch on the internet and i was hoping that you would be able to provide some information regarding the watch.

I am an absolute amateur when it comes to watches as I’ve only recently developed an interest in watches.

The Seiko in question is selling for 500HKD, which equates to rougly 64USD. Would it be a reasonable price? It seems to be in working order except for the bezel which seems to be malfunctioned (as the pictures on the sales site suggest).

The Seiko 5Y23-6060 is one of the old “Sports 150” diver-styled, sports watches which the company sold in the 1990s. I’ve seen examples on the Internet that seem to suggest that this model came out in 1990 although I don’t know when production ended for this particular watch. It carries the reference number beginning with the letters “SCZ”, e.g. SCZ399J.

This quartz ticker was one of the myriad Rolex Submariner inspired models that Seiko made in that decade. Note that this is not a true diver’s watch but one that looks like so. Even the 5Y23 quartz day/date module has been long discontinued. Its serial number points to a production date of August 1990.

There are very few surviving examples of the 5Y23-6060 today, especially the deep blue dialed model with the attractive Pepsi colored rotating bezel. Because of its status as a non-diver’s timepiece, Seiko probably made few pieces of the SCZ series Seiko Sports 150 models. Serious diver’s watch collectors are not likely to exhibit much interest in the SCZ399J.

The sticking bezel is not an uncommon phenomenon with some Seiko models with a rotating elapsed time bezel. A competent watch repairer should be able to pry it off carefully (hopefully without scratching the case) and inspect the rotating gasket underneath the bezel. If the gasket is not badly seized due to age it might be possible to have it cleaned and re-lubed. If the gasket has to be changed, you’ll need to quote the following item (P/N: 0Z3114B02) from your local Seiko repair center.

The best solution would be to change the entire bezel with a new one, if the Seiko service center is still able to obtain the original replacement bezel (P/N: 86310944).

Do note that unlike mechanical watches, old quartz movements have a tendency to fail in varying degrees. A watch like this may exhibit erratic time keeping (accuracy) behavior or drain even new batteries quickly. Seiko repair centers are unlikely to repair individual components, preferring to replace the entire quartz module if a replacement one is still available.

I can’t comment on whether US$64 is a fair price to pay for this watch, as it depends on the overall condition of this Seiko timepiece. Look for other Seiko 5Y23-6060 examples on eBay to get an indication whether you’re getting a great deal on this one. 🙂

Hi Quartzimodo. I have an old Seiko mans watch with numbers 5Y397010 with another number 270794 also on the back. It has St steel back, white face and roman numerals. I was wondering how old it is (I seem to have had it forever!!). It also needs a new glass (cracked), but Seiko no longer make the glass, and I would appreciate some suggestions on where else I can get a replacement glass. Greatly appreciate your help on this one. Thanks. Bill

I’m not familiar with the 5Y39 based Seiko watches and had to look up the Internet to see photos of them. The 5Y39-7010 is indeed a simple quartz dress watch with the basic hour and minute hands, plus a date window. This fine example that I had located has the text “Mov’t Japan” at the bottom of the dial, which means that it was assembled and cased outside of Japan and it’s very likely to have been assembled by the Seiko Instruments factory in Singapore.

Your serial number (270794) strongly indicates that it was manufactured in July 1992. At the time, the Seiko company still used the word “Quartz” to distinguish its quartz watches from their mechanical ones. By the end of the same decade, Seiko probably decided that since they made more quartz watches than automatic or Kinetic ones, printing the word “quartz” was a superfluous and unnecessary exercise.

Today, in the absence of the movement type on the face of the watch you can safely assume that it is a battery operated, quartz watch by default. Seiko will however print the words “Automatic” if the watch has a self-winding mechanical movement, “Kinetic” if it is fitted with a Kinetic movement, “Solar” if it uses a light powered rechargeable battery movement and “Spring Drive” if it is a Grand Seiko with their hybrid, quartz regulated automatic movement.

There are also mechanical hand wound Seiko watches available today but such models are limited to their exclusive and very expensive Grand Seiko range. Although the movement type is never printed on such watches, well…if you are in the market for a manual-wind only Grand Seiko, the company assumes that you are already well informed which GS models are of the hand wind-only type! 🙂

As for the replacement watch crystal, the official part number is 280N10GN00. Although it’s unlikely that Seiko Japan has available stock of this glass, some jewelers, watch repairers and private hobbyists may have this particular crystal. You can also try contacting your nearest Seiko service center, or third party stockists like the Jules Borel and the Otto Frei companies to see if they happen to have the exact one.

You may also come across the same replacement glass on eBay. What if you can’t find the exact glass for your watch? If your watch crystal has the same diameter and thickness as many common watches do, you can also consider an “aftermarket” or third party type. As long as it fits your watch and seals properly, you’re good to go. If there’s a sapphire version available that is an exact fit – it’s even better! 🙂

Hi Quartzimodo. Thank you for your time and detailed help in dating my watch and pointing me in the right direction for obtaining a replacement glass. Very grateful for you assistance. Again, thank you.

While I’m just guessing that the diameter of your watch glass is 40mm or less, it’s best that you measure it with a tape measure or vernier calipers. The tricky part is knowing the thickness of the crystal as it involves popping off the glass to take a measurement. If you happen to own a pair of vernier calipers, take it to a watch repairman who’s willing to dismantle your watch to measure the crystal’s dimensions (in case he doesn’t his own calipers).

Upon digging further, I also found out that this crystal is also shared among some other Seiko models, e.g. 5E20-7A00, 5P22-7A00, 5Y39-7000 and 5Y31-7000 (this list is not exhaustive). Anyway, if you have decided to have the watch glass professionally replaced by a watch technician, it’s a good idea to have the watch rubber gaskets replaced at the same time. This prevents moisture from getting into the watch and fogging up the glass.

Wishing you good luck with finding the replacement crystal! 🙂
Quartzimodo

You have a nice, cushion cased Seiko 7005 automatic from Sept 1974. The 7005-8150 models are considered as collectible vintage Seiko watches and I’ve seen almost mint condition ones asking for US$300. Of course, that is a rare case of very well kept piece with the original stainless steel band. 7005 movements have 17 jewels in them and they were made by Seiko’s Daini factory.

You’ve inherited one of Seiko’s generic quartz dress watches that was made in February 1995. The 7N22 is a simple quartz movement with zero jewels and was designed for slim cased timepieces, which easily fits into the 7N22-6A00’s 6mm thin watch case.

You’ll need the commonly found, Seiko or Maxell SR920SW (or Energizer # 371) silver oxide button cell for this watch. Its operational life is approximately 3 years between battery changes.

This watch doesn’t belong to any particular Seiko sub-range or branded product lines therefore it’s a generic Seiko watch. I’m afraid I don’t know anything about this model’s history as it’s one of the countless quartz gents’ watches that the company made back then. Just as with other Seiko dress watches, the 7N22-6A00 doesn’t seem to have lumed hands or index markers, i.e., the watch face doesn’t glow in the dark.

Although models based on the 7N22-6A00 are quite nice looking, they are not of any particular interest to Seiko watch collectors in general.

The Seiko 5Y23-8049 “Seiko SQ” model that you have is one that was sold only for the North American market (including Canada). The 5Y23 module is a simple 1 jewel movement with a day and date calendar which has long been discontinued by Seiko. It requires a Seiko/Maxell SR920SW silver oxide cell which is widely available and has a 3-year battery life rating.

From the serial number, your watch was made sometime in December 1991. It was most likely to have been assembled by Seiko’s factory in Singapore.

Hi Quartzimodo,
What a fascinating site!
Any info on my luminous, square watch please:
Seiko Quartz
Day/date
SQ
7N43-5001 R1
R
170299
I know it’s not old or valuable but it’s a great simple, clean design and I’m happy with it.
Thanks in advance, and happy new year.

Your Seiko 7N43-5001 is very likely to have been made on July 1991, judging from its watch head design and caseback stamping. I’m surprised to learn from you that it has a fully lumed dial as the examples that I’ve seen on the Internet are those with white dials that don’t glow in the dark.

There’s not much to tell about your particular watch though. It’s one of the many generic quartz dress watches which Seiko made and it’s not part of any particular Seiko sub-ranges. This watch should last you for at least another decade, as long as the quartz movement functions normally. If you haven’t already done so, be sure to change the caseback rubber gasket at your next battery change. 🙂

Your old Seiko 6309-8050 should be from April 1976 judging from its watch face design. I find this model interesting as it’s the earliest example of a Japan assembled 6309 based watch that I’ve seen so far. Most photos of 6309 caliber dress watches that I’ve collected appear to be from the 1980s.

I recently came across my dad’s watch. I was wondering how old it might be as I have never seen a crystal like what’s on this one. The front of watch says Seiko automatic 17 jewels. With day and date on it. The day is in 2 different languages.
The back says Seiko 7 67 1 6 4 Japan U
Water resistant stainless steel
6309-7039.
Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Your father’s old Seiko 6309-7039 was made on June 1977. I haven’t seen this model before and only found this after doing a Google image search. It is, undoubtedly a very seventies design and Seiko used to make watches with that UFO-shaped case as well as multi-faceted crystals back then. I believe the faceted (beveled) glass concept went out of vogue by the following decade until the mid 2000s, when Seiko introduced the 6R15 caliber, SARB001/003/005 models which were sold in Japan.

I’m sorry if I can’t provide further information on your dad’s old Seiko, other than the fact that it was a model that was sold in North America. It wasn’t part of any Seiko sub-lineup (e.g. Actus, VANAC, Advan etc), therefore it was just one of the many generic 6309 automatics which the company made back then.

If you were to check eBay, you’ll find several Seiko Lassale watches with different asking prices or minimum bid amounts. Note that the minimum bids or Buy-It-Now offers vary according to the case metal type, the rarity of the model and whether the watch is for gents or ladies. All else being equal, a Lassale watch for men generally sells higher than a comparable ladies’ version.

Your Seiko Lassale may be rare as far as the Seiko brand goes, but a vintage Rolex Perpetual Datejust it is not. A genuine old Rolex timepiece in stainless steel from the 1950s can fetch a few thousand dollars on the used market, with no shortage of collectors worldwide knocking on your door asking you to part with it. A 14 karat gold Seiko Lassale on the other hand, will always be a Seiko. 🙂 In other words, it will be only valuable to the odd Lassale collector or anyone who’s only interested in the face value of your watch’s gold material.

If you wish to assay the value of your watch purely by its gold content, have it valued by a reputable pawn shop or goldsmith. Whatever amount that the goldsmith estimates would be the minimum value of your watch.

Hi,
Trying to find out further info re: Seiko MS 7S26-3040 and then an F in a square. Can you tell me anything about this watch as there are others with this same number, but different looking than ours. We have a dark gray/black face and no date on it. Thanks!

The “7s26-3040” that you find at the back of your watch refers to the caliber (7s26) and the caseback design code (3040). This is a Seiko 5 automatic gent’s watch and Seiko has made at least thirty or forty different variations of Seiko 5 models with the same 7s26-3040 designation since 1996.

This is why you will find lots of other 7s26-0340 Seiko 5 models out there. The case design will remain the same but the dial color, dial layout, case metal type (stainless steel or gold plated), and watch hands will vary from one model to another. Each model variant will have its unique model reference code, e.g. SKX803K, SKXF11K, SKXQ58J, SKXX88K etc.

The Seiko watch company may design as few as two variations of one watch design, and it can also make hundreds of variations of another watch design. It depends on how popular that particular watch is with buyers. For the 7s26-3040 type Seiko 5, this design proved to be so well received that Seiko decided to release additional variants based on this styling.

Fortunately the model reference code can be traced to the caliber/dial code that is printed at the bottom of the dial (near the 6 o’clock index marker or numeral) – and this caliber/dial code is unique to each and every 7s26-0340 model. Note that the dial code will not be the same as the caseback code. This caliber/dial code will be used by the Seiko service center staff to determine and order the exact dial and hands, should they need to be replaced.

Seiko watch collectors and online sellers don’t reference their Seiko watches by the caliber/dial code, but instead by the caliber/caseback code or the actual Seiko model code if they happen to know the watch model code. The model reference code is never found anywhere on the watch itself. It can be found on the hang tag that accompanies a brand new Seiko watch but generally Seiko watch owners discard the tag or may not receive it when they buy the watch.

Online retailers who sell brand new Seiko watches usually include the model reference code in their ad listing, e.g. “Brand new, unworn Seiko 5 SKXF11K” to describe the watch model.

What if it’s a used Seiko 5 watch and the seller has no knowledge of the actual model reference code? They would use the caliber/caseback number instead, since this code can easily be read from the watch’s back case. Therefore they will describe the watch e.g., “For sale: Pre-owned 7s26-3040 Seiko 5” and include at least one photo of the watch in their ad.

Important notes:

If your Seiko watch is actually a 7s26-3040, it SHOULD have a day and date calendar on the dial. No exceptions.

Any Seiko watch that uses the 7s26 movement must come with the day/date calendar window. I suspect that either the dial is the wrong type for this watch or the caseback cover is meant for a 7s26-3040. Certain Seiko watches can actually use caseback covers that’s originally meant for other Seiko models if they fit the watch perfectly. In your case, this watch has been modified by the original owner or the seller and the only way to know if it really has a 7s26 movement in it is to pry open the back cover and inspect the movement.

Therefore these are the possibilities:

1. The watch case is incorrect (not original) for this watch model.
2. The movement is the incorrect kind for this model.
3. The watch dial is of the wrong type for this model.
4. Any combination of the above.

You have a rare vintage Seiko watch in that 7002-8031 of yours. It was originally manufactured in January 1993 by the Seiko Daini factory.
The 7002 movement was short lived in terms of production years and was replaced by the long running, 7s26 by 1996 which is still made to this day.

Hi, I have 4227-00E0 with serial number of 382811 that is in a very beautiful shape.
Do you have any knowledge about this movement? I know it’s automatic cause I can hear the rotor spinning, but other than that I have though luck seeking any informations for this movement.

I think the 4227 is a recently introduced, automatic caliber that is meant for ladies’ watches. The 4227-00E0 is also suitable for boys with small wrists as its design appears to be “unisex”. It probably replaces the old 4207 caliber which was fitted to the ladies’ models from the Seiko 5 Sports lineup.

This movement has an additional manual hand winding capability as its main spring is very small; as the wrist movement alone may not be sufficient to wind the main spring. Don’t confuse the 4227’s hand winding capability with the larger 4R36 movement for men’s models! In the case of the 4R36, its hand-winding feature is a selling point (it can actually self wind properly without the auxiliary hand winding, just like the 4R16 or 7S26), rather than being a necessary feature.

As far as I know, mechanical Seiko ladies’ watches are usually fitted with either a manual wind-only or automatic, with additional hand-winding movement (but not hacking though). The older 4205, 4206 and 4207 calibers are likely to be the 4227’s previous family members and they all have auxiliary hand-winding features.

From your watch’s serial number, your 4227-00EO was made in August 2013.

Hi Quartzimodo,
I bought at a garage sale Gold Seiko Automtatic 17 Jewel watch.
Number on back is 9N6116. Came in funky little orange box that has fallen apart. Can you tell me age and is the watch real gold or not? Thank you Rick

Seiko made very few models out of 18K or 24K solid gold and most of the gold-looking watches that you see are just stainless steel with a thin gold plating. The easiest to know is to examine its caseback. If you can find the inscriptions like “18K” Solid Gold” on the caseback then the watch case was molded from solid gold. A gold plated Seiko on the other hand, will have the text “ST Steel Base Metal” which pretty much describes it as using stainless steel as the base metal, even though the appearance of the watch is golden.

On eBay, you will notice that the asking prices for solid gold, vintage Seiko watches start from US$800 upwards, depending on the rarity of the model and for its gold content.

In most instances, the high offer and opening bid amounts are due to the gold metal rather than the watch itself. In other words, a used solid gold Rolex Perpetual Datejust will cost you much more than an old Seiko watch with the same gold purity and content. Even vintage stainless steel Rolex watches are in high demand and are sought after by collectors, let alone one that’s made from solid gold.

If you had paid very cheaply for that garage sale Seiko, it’s either you got a gold plated Seiko or the seller didn’t know its true value. “9N6116” only tells me that this watch was made in a November, year unknown. You’ll need to tell me the caseback code (read my article from Part 1) before I can identify the actual year of manufacture.

That’s a great question. A Seiko 5 Sports with the caseback code “7S36-03J0” and a dial code of “04Y4” suggests either the SNZG013K or SNZG015K (the latter being fitted with a nylon strap).

Your watch is from March 2015 and not from 2005. There were NO Seiko 5 Sports watches with a large military styled dial like the SNZG013K available in 2005. Furthermore Seiko only introduced the luminous index markers on the outer chapter ring from the year 2008 onwards.

One of the first Seiko military-styled models to adopt this lumed outer index marker design was the 7T92 based, model SNDA57P. I have one (the SNDA57P) I remember purchasing it in early 2008. Shortly after the SNDA57P was released, I noticed new Seiko 5 Sports models being sold with a very similar chapter ring like the one on the SNZG013/015K.

The luminous material (LumiBrite) that is applied on this chapter ring is the same type of LumiBrite that Seiko uses on its classic 7s26 “Monster” type diver’s watches.

By the year 2008, Seiko started to use this much brighter and more sensitive version of LumiBrite on its newer Seiko 5 models. AFAIK, older Seiko 5 and Seiko 5 Sports models had the “basic” LumiBrite compound. The older LumiBrite material had a deeper shade of green in the dark and a whitish appearance in bright light.

It is not unusual for Seiko to continue producing certain Seiko 5 models for years after they were first introduced. If the model turns out to be a top selling one in the market, the company will keep selling that same model until Seiko’s marketing department decides to discontinue it. Seiko will also discontinue a watch model on account of the movement itself being totally phased out.

There isn’t much I can tell further about your particular model. The SNZG013K is just one of Seiko’s countless designs from their evergreen Seiko 5 Sports family. The ones that aren’t popular have been known to be dropped from the market in just two years’ time – no matter how much a handful of consumers love them. I’m just surprised that this model made it to the year 2015; therefore it must have been selling very well.

Have a look at the H023 series Prospex Sky Professional if you haven’t heard of this mid-premium range of pilot styled wristwatches. It’s one of my favorite Seiko timepieces but it didn’t fare that well on the market; so by the end of 2004 Seiko stopped making them altogether. 🙁

I don’t know about the history of the 5Y30 movement; it was just one of Seiko’s many quartz calibers for simple gents’ dress watches which the company made in the 1990s. This is a very simple quartz movement with just the hour and minute hands and Seiko used the 5Y30 caliber for its slim line of dress timepieces.

The 5Y30A movement requires a Seiko or Maxell SR920SW (Energizer #371 will also work) 1.55 volt silver oxide cell, with an operational life of 3 years between battery changes. This 1-jewel caliber has been discontinued for quite some time. There’s nothing really special about this movement, as with many other Seiko “simple” quartz movements.

Your particular watch is actually the 5,341st piece that was made in the month of January 1988. Seiko’s serial numbering always starts with “0000”, so the first watch of the same type for any production month would bear the serial number “810000” and not “810001”. Theoretically the last watch (of the same model) that was made in January 1998 would get this serial number: “819999” (10 thousand pieces per month altogether, from 0000-9999).

Note that the exact number of pieces that Seiko makes for the same watch in any particular production month is only known to certain Seiko insiders. They could budget a total of 6,000 pieces for a particular month and resume manufacturing in the following month. It depends on the supply and demand, so the total watch production for any given month can vary.

BTW, your Seiko 5Y30-7000 was assembled by Seiko’s overseas production factory in Singapore.

Sir I am trying to id year of my watch build. thank you in advance for any help you may give me.
Back of case
Stainless Steel
6119-8080
waterproof
851840
Japan E ???
Front
Automatic
21 Jewel
Day & Date

Your Seiko automatic 6119-8080 was made in May 1968. The 6119 was a short lived, simple movement which Seiko made from the late 1960s to the early 1970s, possibly until 1971 or 1972. Definitely not from 1980 as you had suggested.

I have a yellow dialed Seiko 5 Sports 6119-7160 myself, which is a rare sports watch with a “cushion” styled case. 🙂

If you have a 7009 based Seiko 5 it would definitely have been made before 1996, because this is the year which Seiko introduced the 7s26 caliber which replaces their old 7002 and 7009 automatic movements.

Therefore your serial number 895487 points to September 1988 without any doubt.

I have a seiko quartz 5 watch 8C23-6010 A1 model
Serial #567132
Japan A
Probably given to me as gift in 80s or 90s doesn’t work and I need to know approx value to know if it’s worth fixing. I think I had battery replaced years ago but didn’t help.

Hi, I have a 1977 seiko 5 automatic 21 jewel watch that seems to be gold, there is wear on the edges but it is yellow underneath, the back says,
SEIKO, 780560, JAPAN E. Around the edge reads, WATER RESISTANT SPG BACK ST STEEL 6319-8060, the days can be in either English or Arabic, my auntie who lived in Oman in the 70s bought it back for my father.
Any info would be greatly appreciated

Thanks for the question! You have a Seiko 5 automatic from August 1977, which is a rarity these days but not necessarily a sought after Seiko vintage watch. The letters “SGP BACK” indicates “Seiko Gold Plated” (i’s SGP, not SPG) which means that the case is not made of solid gold.

This is a fully Japan made watch and was assembled at Seiko’s Suwa factory back then. The 6319 automatic movement is of the fully automatic type, which means no auxiliary hand winding is available and it does not hack (stopping of the second hand for accurate time synchronization). The fact that the day language is in English/Arabic meant that the watch was intended for sale for the Middle East countries, including Oman.

As with all watches with a mechanical day/date disc, do not change the date or day between 9 pm to 2 am. Doing so can cause the day/date changing mechanism to fail, so make sure that your watch is showing 6 o’clock (AM or PM doesn’t matter) before manually setting the calendar.

Hello, and thanks for sharing your knowledge about vintage watches! This is a great site.

I’d like to consult with you the date of a recent purchase. All signs point to September 1990, which was a personally significant month. If that’s the case, I’d love to restore this watch to its original glory (crystal and bracelet in particular.)

Your inclusion of links to photos of your watch helps a lot in identifying your Seiko 5 automatic. The 7009 was a long lived automatic movement which Seiko made from the late 1970s when it was finally replaced by the 7s26A caliber in 1996. The absence of the text “JAPAN” on the front dial tells me that this watch was definitely made in September 1990 and that its factory of assembly was in Hong Kong, China.

Seiko had also made the 7s26 version of the 7009-3130 which you can see here as an example. The 7s26-3130 is near identical to your watch except for its movement and the dial feet, which means that both watches’ dials are incompatible with one another due to the different positioning of the dial feet. However, it appears that the replacement crystal and bracelet for the 7s26-3130 are compatible with the 7009-3130.

The inherent problem with the case design of these models is that such watches have integrated bracelets with notched case lugs, making aftermarket leather straps or Zulu/NATO nylon straps impossible to fit. You’ll have to resort to finding replacement bracelets that are the exact match as the original stainless steel band.